an attack on 54th and Ellis
One of these days I hope to return to the habit of frequent postings about historical figures or minor life events. However, at present I still can only post when I make time; thus only for really important news.
I wish all the news was good.
After Large Group ended Friday night, I turned down an offer to grab a meal and decided to walk home from Ida Noyes. I was wearing my backpack, and had a grocery bag in one hand. I wasn't paying much attention to my precise route, being preoccupied with some other things, but decided to walk west on 54th.
Around 9:15 I was approaching Ellis, walking on the north side of the street. I saw 4-5 black kids turning the corner and coming towards me on the sidewalk. As far as I could tell, they weren't aiming for me; they just happened to be walking in the other direction. I didn't give them much thought, figuring we'd pass each other, and then I'd cross the street and walk past Koziminski School.
I passed the first few guys, then the last kids in line suddenly started beating me. They were smart (or lucky) and knocked off my glasses, so all I remember is dark shapes. They knocked me off balance and I fell into some bushes on the side of the sidewalk. We exchanged a few kicks, then they ran off laughing.
After five minutes of fumbling around blindly for my glasses, I gave up and headed home. The damage report: several nasty scrapes on my forehead (they look worse than they feel), and some chipped teeth (annoying but hopefully fixable). I can't find my spare pair of glasses, so I decide to put off further hunting until the morning.
I was thinking about bed when Samuel and Ben came home. They offered to help me look for my glasses, and insisted we go back to the scene. With their help I located them, amazingly undamaged. Praise be to God for not having to pay for a new pair--and for good roommates who don't take "no" for an answer.
Although I'm sad this happened, on the whole I was lucky. The thugs didn't demand my wallet, or my backpack (which had my laptop!), or take my keys--which dropped out of my coat onto the sidewalk when I fell. In fact, they didn't say anything at all. I wonder about their motive--was this an initiation rite? a random act of violence? Did they not like having to share the sidewalk with a white guy? Or was it merely their solution to ennui?
Whatever their intentions, I hope (as Ben prayed) that they repent, and see the error of their ways. Maybe this is wishful thinking, but when we went back an hour later, and found my glasses, they were in a patch of bush that I could have sworn I had already searched. Maybe there's hope.
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P.S. Maybe it's also a sign that it's time for me to leave. Since leaving 54th and Kimbark 9 months ago, I have found a day job, acquired a car....and been mugged and now assaulted. Maybe God's trying to tell me something.
I wish all the news was good.
After Large Group ended Friday night, I turned down an offer to grab a meal and decided to walk home from Ida Noyes. I was wearing my backpack, and had a grocery bag in one hand. I wasn't paying much attention to my precise route, being preoccupied with some other things, but decided to walk west on 54th.
Around 9:15 I was approaching Ellis, walking on the north side of the street. I saw 4-5 black kids turning the corner and coming towards me on the sidewalk. As far as I could tell, they weren't aiming for me; they just happened to be walking in the other direction. I didn't give them much thought, figuring we'd pass each other, and then I'd cross the street and walk past Koziminski School.
I passed the first few guys, then the last kids in line suddenly started beating me. They were smart (or lucky) and knocked off my glasses, so all I remember is dark shapes. They knocked me off balance and I fell into some bushes on the side of the sidewalk. We exchanged a few kicks, then they ran off laughing.
After five minutes of fumbling around blindly for my glasses, I gave up and headed home. The damage report: several nasty scrapes on my forehead (they look worse than they feel), and some chipped teeth (annoying but hopefully fixable). I can't find my spare pair of glasses, so I decide to put off further hunting until the morning.
I was thinking about bed when Samuel and Ben came home. They offered to help me look for my glasses, and insisted we go back to the scene. With their help I located them, amazingly undamaged. Praise be to God for not having to pay for a new pair--and for good roommates who don't take "no" for an answer.
Although I'm sad this happened, on the whole I was lucky. The thugs didn't demand my wallet, or my backpack (which had my laptop!), or take my keys--which dropped out of my coat onto the sidewalk when I fell. In fact, they didn't say anything at all. I wonder about their motive--was this an initiation rite? a random act of violence? Did they not like having to share the sidewalk with a white guy? Or was it merely their solution to ennui?
Whatever their intentions, I hope (as Ben prayed) that they repent, and see the error of their ways. Maybe this is wishful thinking, but when we went back an hour later, and found my glasses, they were in a patch of bush that I could have sworn I had already searched. Maybe there's hope.
=======
P.S. Maybe it's also a sign that it's time for me to leave. Since leaving 54th and Kimbark 9 months ago, I have found a day job, acquired a car....and been mugged and now assaulted. Maybe God's trying to tell me something.