Blue Collar Heaven

     “I’ll tell you something I believe,” said Bobby.

     James looked on in an equal mixture of fear and amazement.

     “It’s what I would call my main philosophy. I think every day that I’m living is a gift. I think this is heaven,” Bobby said, and smiled with satisfaction.

     James tried to reflect Bobby’s smile, but found he couldn’t shake his confusion enough to reproduce its confidence or authenticity.

     “Let me tell you a story, James. When I was a little kid, around fifth or sixth grade, I went up to wait at my bus stop one morning. It was up at the top of my street, Warwick St., right where it intersected with another side-street that runs kind of parallel to Ocean Road. The road’s called Love Lane. I don’t know if you know it, but it’s a little winding two-lane affair with a double yellow line painted down the middle. There’s not too much traffic on it, especially in the mornings, but the speed limit is 45. So when the cars do come, they really come whipping by. There was a sharp corner right up by my bus stop, and another curve on the other side. So you’d hear the cars coming and then you’d only see them whip by for a few seconds before they were gone around the next curve.

     “Now, don’t ask me why I did this. But I used to play this game. I guess it was because I was bored because I was the only kid at my bus stop. I had no one to talk to. Or maybe it was because I was plain stupid. Anyway. I used to play this game. I’d go out and sit my ass, Indian style, right on the yellow lines in the middle of the road while I waited for the bus. I’d sit there until I heard the cars coming from either way, then I’d get up and run out of the road before they got to me. Sometimes I’d kind of play chicken with it, but I’d never let them get too close. I’d always get out of there in plenty of time.

     “Until one day…” Here Bobby paused and looked hard at James to make sure he was listening. He was.

     Bobby cleared his throat. “Until one day when I was sitting out there and I fell asleep. I was really tired that morning and it was peaceful and silent out there with no cars coming by. And I’d gotten so used to the game that I guess I completely lost the sense of danger. I didn’t even know I was asleep until I heard the car horn blasting at me. It sounded like it was all around me, even inside me. And it had a deeper, booming tone to it like a truck horn. Behind the horn, I heard the tires screeching across the pavement the way they do when the brakes are locked up. I opened my eyes and saw the thing coming at me, fast, from about ten feet away. It was an old, vanilla colored Oldsmobile or Buick or something. And it was just starting to cock off at an angle from the driver jerking the wheel. It took me a second before I could move, but when I finally figured out it was real I popped to my feet quick and bolted out of the way.”

     James sighed and let his shoulders drop down in relief.

     “Yeah,” said Bobby. “The only problem was that there was a truck coming from the other way. I didn’t see it until it was right on top of me. All I saw was the big, shiny chrome grill bearing down on me, right in front of my face and like four feet over my head. There was nothing I could do. All I had time for was to put my hands up in front of my face before the thing smashed into me.”

     There were a few seconds of silence while James waited for Bobby to continue speaking. Bobby appeared to be trapped in his memory, looking back in time.

     Finally, James couldn’t wait any longer. “So… you got hit?” he asked.

     Bobby shook his head. “That’s the thing, James. I didn’t. I closed my eyes tight, and I felt this rush of wind come by me. It was like a hurricane wind, it was so strong. And when it was past, I opened my eyes. And there was nothing there. No car, no truck… nothing.”

     James waited again, and again Bobby didn’t expound. “So… they swerved around you. And by the time you opened your eyes they were gone?”

     Bobby shook his head. “No. There was no possible way it could have missed me. I could practically feel the grill touching my hands when I put them up in front of my face. It was too close to miss me.”