Let me tell yall what I did a few years ago yesterday... I was still in the army and I had just gotten back from JRTC in Louisiana. Since I was still in the Army at Fort Campbell and I was pretty much broke. Cam was up in Detroit because that field prob was more than just a few days... I needed him to go SOMEWHERE, so he just went to the crib. Anyways, when I got back, his 3rd birthday was coming up... Now for the entire 3 years of his life I have NEVER missed a birthday or Christmas... no matter WHERE I was at on this planet, (deployments, field... whatever) I wasnt going to miss his day. Anywho... His birthday is the next day and I have $47 dollars to my name. This isnt enough to catch a bus, train... Definitely not a flight, or drive up to where he is at. The only thing I had... to my name is that $47 and my Honda CBR 600RR motorcycle. I was all in my feelings thinking... I was going to miss my sons birthday and Im IN the states!!! I COULDNT stand the thought of that and I was SICK and tired of asking my parents and family for money. So I sat down... all in my feelings... and I did the calculations: My motorcycle got about 40 miles to the gallon and it held about 4 gallons. Thats 160 miles... If I fill up 3 times at $15 per tank, Im JUST at $45 dollars. 160*3 is 480 and I had about half a tank to start out with. From driveway to driveway was about 520 miles... So WITH the gas I had already in bike, plus my $47, mathematically, I had JUST enough... So I fried some chicken I had in my freezer, made me a couple sandwiches... put a couple bottles of water in my bookbag and I psyched my mind to think that this was a good idea. I had only been riding a motorcycle for about 5 weeks at this point and ONLY been on the freeway about 3 or 4 times. I didnt even own a riders jacket yet, but I had my faithful hoodie though! I remember walking outside telling my neighbor Kristin Hall and the rest of the Dixie crew that I would be right back... Im just going for a quick ride... And I was off... The drive, (in a car), USUALLY takes about 9 hours... But thats barely stopping and pushing it through the entire state of both Kentucky and Ohio. The first few hours of the bike ride was rough... and by the time I made it to the other side of Kentucky, I KNEW that this was a bad idea. However, it was too late to turn around.... Im half way there! If I turn around now, I will be traveling the same distance if I just made it the rest of the way. I made it halfway through Ohio before the muscle cramps started kicking in, bad... The sun went down and the only thing I had keeping me warm was my hoodie and the engine that was about 4 inches away from my butt.... But I definitely couldnt stop now... There was no way Id make it anywhere... About three-quarters of the way through Ohio, I was close to tears because the pain in my back and my legs was so intense. I remember the clouds had come over from above and it started drizzling... I had pulled up to a state police station, just to sit and warm up. I told them where I was going and where I came from... and they turned me away in the rain. So I had went to a waffle house that was still open. I didnt have any money to order anything so I just tried to rest. The waitress gave me some hot chocolate and when the rain eased up a little, I was off again. After about 12 hours of lying to my parents, and keeping this painful secret because I didnt want any sympathy from anyone... I finally arrive to Detroit and see my son. Even though I could barely walk and my back was one big not... I went through too much NOT to pick him up... So when I seen him... and he seen me... the joy he had in his eyes took away the pain, just long enough so that I can grab him, hug him and let him know that I loved him... Any who... Here I am 4 years later... where he just turned 7, today! I love this little hard headed little boy but trust me... NOTHING will come between me and him.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 23:54:34 +0000