Dear Brothers and Sisters:
Something special occurred on New Year's Eve. I would call it the
defining moment of our generation, but it was something even greater. It
was a
moment that transcends all conceptions of age, gender, race, or class. (
I
speak of the moment in the present tense for it is still with me. To put
it in the past would suggest a departure from an event that continues to
exist within all who experienced it.) Articulation of the
phenomenon
which transpired is difficult, but bear with me as I attempt to overcome
the barrier of language to convey the experience as
fully as possible.
It all started after we hit our third and final New Year's party of
the evening. The time? 2:30 A.M. Gordon, Jamo, and I decided that, of
course,
New Year's would not be complete without a trip to White Castle.
So, the
three of us along with two female associates of ours jumped into Gordon's
car and
headed for The Castle on the corner of Lexington and University.
We
ordered our food and sat down. I distinctly remember not being able to
keep my liquor-heavy eyelids completely open. I
was
looking down at my
plate, drooling, staring at a cheeseburger. Then it happened. I raised my
head and
feasted my eyes upon a
world of delights and tranquillity that most men and women dare not
imagine.
Jamo had gathered everyone in the crowded White Castle together for a group photo. The motley crew included the homeless, the upper-middle class, the frat boys, the housewives, the prostitutes, the crack dealers, the middle-aged professionals, the working poor, the black, the white, the asian, the hispanic, the homosexual, the fat, the skinny. A true and complete sampling of American society. All arm-in-arm. And there was Jamo in the middle of the group. Everyone was smiling. The camera was set on auto and sat on a table across from the group. I don't even know if the table was high enough to capture anything but waist-lines. It didn't matter. It wasn't about the picture. It was about the moment.
As soon as the flash went off, I jumped up, arms raised high -- my face a grin from ear to ear, my body tingling from head-to-toe. I started humming. You know the song. I don't know the name of the tune -- I don't know if anyone really does, but it is the song associated with New Year's. The words go something like, "Should old acquaintance be forgot...," etc. I don't really know the words, but I was humming as if I were some conduit for a Higher Being. Within moments so was everyone else in the building -- employees included. There were tears in my eyes. The Castle resonated with the sound of singing voices. Embraces and hugs abounded among strangers -- but not strangers, not tonight. There were no more barriers. This was it. This was one of those special, ephemeral moments that perhaps only occurs once in a lifetime, but lasts a lifetime. This was Lenin's "Brotherhood of Man." To think, one small 39 cent hamburger was able to bring this cross-section of America together. The irony...a product of pure capitalism was able to erase, even if just for a fleeting moment, all institutionalized capitalistic barriers, not just between individuals of various classes, races, creeds, and sexual preferences -- but within the self. The usual drives which fostered inhibition and competition were gloriously disarmed.
Eventually our embraces ended. Jamo, Gordon, and I headed for the door. I remember turning and looking inside one last time. Was The Castle really bringing people together? Or were the people inside The Castle bringing people together? Was this the story of a triumphant institution existing in perfect servitude to humanity? Or was it an example of the preseverance and endurance of the human spirit? I didn't know. But it didn't matter, not tonight. And what did I feel as I surveyed that scene one last time? Ah, yes...
Peace....
Hope....
Though nothing was verbalized, the three of us wanted to celebrate our new sense of hope, personal freedom, and lost inhibition. Jamo and I rolled down all the windows in the car, as Gordon blasted the A-Team theme song from the stereo at full volume. Screaming and yelling at the top of our lungs, we tore through the grass on the Hamline campus.
