The park.
The park is often times a place where people go to clear their mind from the stress of their day to day lives. It is a place where people who struggle with work, depression, anxiety, and/or loss can go to take some weight off of their shoulders after a long day of putting up with life. Whether you're going to the park to play some basketball with your friends, to have a small picnic with your family, or to watch the sunset in the presence of your significant other the park has a way of getting you to live within the moment and sometimes those moments can become some of the greatest memories you hold within your mind.
While everyone might not agree with me on this notion, I can honestly say that the park was one of the most impactful locations of my childhood. Regardless of the offer, I would not trade in the memories I received from that small park for the riches and luxuries of the whole entire world.
Growing up as a kid, I was the son of a single mom who struggled to make ends meet. Living in a not so stable apartment room which was about the size of one bedroom and the closet of typical suburban household, you could say that in terms of growing up finically stable I got the short end of the stick. My mother could barely afford to buy me clothes meaning I'd often have to wear the same pair of shirts and shorts throughout the entirety of the week, and sometimes her and I would both have to skip meals so she could afford to pay rent on time.
I always felt lesser and dirty however, I think the person who kept me from being unhappy the most through all of those hardships was the only father figure I had in my life and that man was my grandfather. My grandpa wasn't exactly the richest of folks, but yet he still found the time to meet with me at the park on the weekends to feed the birds or to watch him paint surreal portraits of the afternoon sky. He was an amazing artist and more importantly a wonderful man who taught me my morals, my values, my beliefs, and last but definitely not least what it means to be human.
I remember the lesson he taught me two days before he passed away the most.
I'm not sure if my reasoning for remembering it above the other memories was because of what he said, or because that was the last chance I'd ever get to see him alive. However, regardless of my reason I also believe it was one of the greatest lessons I've ever been taught till this very day.
I remember sitting next to my grandpa while holding a ice pack against the side of my head, all banged up and bruised because the neighborhood bullies thought it would be a great idea to give me a beat down for sticking up for someone they were picking on because it was the right thing to do.
I don't know why but at that particular moment in time, I was rather irate. My grandpa was smiling and feeding the birds while doing his best not to comment on my obvious injuries however, with just a mere glance I could tell that the sight of my wounds had struck a soft spot within the very depths of his soul. I wasn't mad at my grandpa but I was irritated and desperately wanted to understand why what happened did happen in the first place.
Was stepping up for a kid that ended up leaving me for dead really worth it?
Is it really that fun to push smaller people around just because they are weaker than you are?
Why can't we all just respect each other and leave other people alone?
These questions caused a series of negative thoughts to swarm into my mind like honeybee's swarming into a bee hive, clouding the subconsciousness of my sense of both right and wrong as I sat silently on that wooden bench without saying a single word. My depth of perception slowly narrowed as hatred and anger began to consume my mind, clouding my judgement for a small moment as I tightly clenched both of my fist. I grit my teeth as the flames of rage began to burn deep within the depths of my soul, my body trembled a bit as I bounced my knee up and down at a rapid pace in hopes of keeping myself calm. However, the pace of my heart began to subtly slow down as I felt my grandfather rest his hand upon my shoulder to comfort me during my time of disarray.
