A Work Drawing:
Carving Pumpkins:
Cab stories:
I got in the cab and told him where to go (an address in Williamsburg, Brooklyn).
"Do you know where that is?" I instinctively asked.
"Of course."
"Sorry, old reflex. I lived there when there was nothing but crack hoes, junkies and gangs; when it was hard to get a cab to take me there."
"That was a long time ago."
"Yeah. Years ago."
"Yes. It's different now, my friend. Probably one of our biggest destinations."
So we talked about how most people he picks up are going to, or coming from, Brooklyn. Going to Brooklyn to party, or going back to Brooklyn to sleep.
Soon we started talking about relationships (not sure how we got on the subject, but with two strange guys, it's bound to come up). He'd been married twice. The first was an arranged marriage - that's common in Pakistan, he said. She was the love of his life and she had cheated on him. It left a hole in him that was insatiable - he was left hollow and adrift. Eventually, he met a new woman - "Too young - avoid the ones who are too young - but mine is amazing. Everything I ever wanted and I love her dearly."
I noticed he was Hollywood handsome. He had stoner eyes - half shut slits crowned with wide caterpillar eyebrows in a permanent arch. He had a superhero's facial structure and a mop of black hair speckled with salty grays.
"How old is she?"
He laughed. "Eighteen years younger than me. Twenty seven. I told her, 'I don't have any money and I drive a cab.' She said, 'I don't care. I want you.' She choose me. That's the way things sometimes work. We are imperfect and most of the time, unhappy, but occasionally things work out. There is only one man who is perfect and sometimes he grants happiness to us.
Now I'm married and I love her very much. I have two kids with her [and three more from the prior marriage] and the other wife is no longer in my thoughts. Instead of pain and longing, I think of the problems we had, not the love we had, and I think of how much I love my wife. God has granted me with four beautiful boys and a girl, and it is very rewarding. Not all the time, but children change everything. For the better, I think."
"How old are your children?"
"My daughter is the youngest. She's a year and a half. The oldest boy is eleven."
"Uh oh. He's hitting the teenage years."
"Yes, and it shows."
"And I feel sorry for the boy who tries to date your daughter. He'll face not only you, but four tough brothers."
"Yes, and they are very tough and that boy will have a hard time. I'm still trying to get used to that. There are things to be said for arranged marriages and things to be said for the way it is done here. I think our way is a bit simpler and, in some ways, easier.
After the divorce I was a shell, and it was hard to get used to dating. I wasn't ready. But now it is good. Most of your life may not be filled with happiness, but occasionally God provides you with what you need."
He dropped me off and I thanked him.