The Cab Ride

With the night out at Talea Brewing Company winding down, Mike sits waiting for his ride. It's raining heavily so he decides to use his newfound Uber credit to splurge on a cab. It’s a pretty long walk to the subway.

Within minutes a black Escalade pulls up to the curb. Mike opens the door.

"For Mike?"
"Yes."

He hops in the back seat of the car.

"Wow, just look at that place," the driver—who Mike already knows is named Kofi—says as he speeds away.
"I know, so many hot chicks, the beer is pretty great too."
"How many did you have?"
"Oh, just a couple."
"I wasn't talking about the beers."
"Neither was I."

They share a mutual laugh.

"So how many do you want? That's the real question."
"You know, I've given this a lot of thought and I've decided that half a woman would probably be too much for me!"
"Ha! Well, that's great!"
"Why is that great?"
"Well, if you only want a half and you get a whole, you're happy!"
"Trueee!"

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"
"I'm 32."
"Ah yes, the early thirties. I'm almost twice your age. If I could give you some advice, this is a time for planting seeds, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, as I tell my girlfriend all the time. It's time for me to have children."
"Yes! Because if you have them now, by the time you are my age they will be old enough to take care of themselves, and that's exactly where you want to be. Because then you can retire in peace."

"How many more years till you retire?"
"Well, my youngest is 23, so probably in five or six years, once he gets a bit more settled."
"Will you go back home?"
"Yes, of course!"
"And where is that?"
"Ghana."

"How long have you been in New York?"
"Longer than you've been alive!"
"No way!"
"Yes, way! Look at that picture of my mother." Kofi points to the back of the passenger seat. Mike uses the light on his phone to get a better look. It shows a Black woman standing with two white men.

"Wait, is that Bill Clinton?!"
"Yes!"
"Your mom met Bill Clinton?"
"Yes!"
"How?!"
"She was a teacher in Brooklyn and one year she won an award for being the best teacher in New York, so she met the president."
"That's amazing!"
"Yes, it was a true honor."

"Where is she now?"
"After she retired, she moved back to Ghana. She became sick very quickly. They took her to the hospital over there and the doctors gave her the wrong medicine, so she got even sicker. By the time we brought her back over here, it was too late. She was already on her way out."
"That is so sad, I am so sorry."
"It's okay, that too is a part of life."

"Isn't it strange, it's almost as if it was the teaching that kept her going?"
"It's not strange, it is what happened. As long as your mind has something to do in the morning, your body will fight for that morning."
"And once that something is gone...."
"Your body will stop fighting."

The conversation with this gregarious driver has left quite an impression on Mike.

"You know, in my whole life I have never said this to anyone, but I am going to say this to you. I think you should run for office!"
"What?!"
"Yes! Why not? I'm not saying run for president, but there are so many other smaller roles that I think you might enjoy. The city council, comptroller. Yes, that’s a thing. I don't know what it is, but it is a thing. Why not?"
"But I have no experience in politics!"

"Ancient Romans believed that the best time to enter political life was towards the end of it. After the age of 50. By that time, they thought a person had accumulated enough life experience and maturity to serve the public admirably. Think about it, you know these people, you know their struggles, you know what they need. You can help, you know because you've been there. You've lived their struggle."

"Wow. That's true."

"I think about my community and my father. He loves to lecture! He loves to impart his wisdom to me and my sister. But up until recently, I wasn't very interested in what he had to say. He is a lot like you, right? Gone through a lot of the same things you probably went through. Immigrated, and raised a family. He has so much to teach and there are definitely people out there that would benefit from his wisdom. But my sister and I are sick of it! We've heard it our whole lives! I believe the same applies to you. You have so much knowledge and good advice that you can teach the younger generation, all you need is a platform. Think about it, 90% of politics is giving speeches! You'd love it!"

"Are you going to be my campaign manager?!"

They laugh.

"No, sadly I still have far too much to do and accomplish to be spending time in politics, but you are perfect for the job."

The Escalade pulls up to a curb near Wall Street. Mike opens the door to get out.

"Thank you, young man, just as I hoped to impart some wisdom to you, you have planted a seed within me. And I thank you for it."

"Do you know why I brought up politics?"
"No, why?"
"Because I'd vote for you. This country was built by and for immigrants. And the more we grow, the less our leaders remember that. We've become entitled. And the only people who know that you aren't entitled to anything in this life are the immigrants. So don't you think it's time they started leading us?"

With that, Mike gets out of the car and walks into his apartment building.