Reuben is a big man. He's not the biggest, he's about 6'1" and he weighs about 230 pounds I suppose. He's tall, handsome, really bright, and intelligent, mind you, and he's simply the most amazing man I've ever had the privilege of knowing. Not that I'm the least bit biased, but if you don't believe anything I say about my son, you can feel free to ask either of his grandmothers, they will certainly agree with me on every point.
All that being said, my son can be an asshat. He admits it, he rather embraces it as well. We'll be walking (anywhere) and my darling boy hates it, won't tolerate it, when someone wants to approach either of us for any reason. He's not where were are to chat, he's not where we are to talk (small talk), to be asked if he needs help, or to be given any assistance whatsoever. If he needed assistance, he would damn well ask for it. Since he hasn't asked for it, it can be rightly assumed that he doesn't need any assistance whatsoever. This can be seen by spectators or on-lookers as being a bit gruff, to put it mildly; most people see him coming and either stand to the side or dip their heads so as not to give eye contact. One thing my son LOVES to do is to walk straight to where he's going, nearly daring someone to cut him off, and when they come close enough to him he stares directly into their eyes as he pushes past with his face stoic and uninviting. No one has approached us; not once. We get where we're going uninterrupted for the most part.
I was at the mall today and I was doing two things; one, I was getting my steps in, and two, I was trying to walk through the mall without buying anything or being distracted in any way because I didn't want to buy anything. I was there to get my 10,000+ steps in. It's over 105 degrees again today, and I just wanted to work my body! I had no intention of buying anything from anyone. At the mall there are about 20 different merchants standing in the middle of the vast halls, calling out to folks to get them to come up to their kiosks to buy something. They sell keychains, phone cases, stuffed animals, cards, makeup, you name it. I didn't want to be bothered so I went into REUBEN MODE!! (it really worked)
There I am, in the Penn Square Mall in Oklahoma City. I walked with purpose. I threw my shoulders back, stood as tall as I could and I put my "Don't-even-think-about-looking-in-my-face" eyes on. I kept my jaw tight, I breathed just so. I had to actively think about my breathing so I wouldn't overdo it, and so I could draw in the right amount for the faster pace I was keeping. I must have passed 300 people, not one of them got in my way. Without exception they began parting to the right and to the left, a couple of them saw me coming and scooted across in front of me a bit to get to the other side before I overtook them. I was really enjoying myself and I thought I should take a minute and text my son to let him know how very grateful I am to be pushing through the crowds with ease on my mission to walk my 5+ miles in the air-conditioned mall!
The Penn Square Mall holds a bit of history for Reuben and me. It was the mall we came to when he was just a lad, and he put his right hand into some white gooey clay mix in order to make a permanent hand print for the new and innovative play area of the Mall itself. Hundreds of kids did it that weekend. His handprint was marked with his initials RS, and placed on the wall. They tried to tell us where the hand print would be once they were placed, but I suppose it would be nearly impossible to get them all straight. We found his handprint though! Many years later they took the handprints down off the walls and they mentioned it on television and such so parents or even the kids themselves (who were all grown up 25 years later) could come to get their plastered handprints. Reuben's is still on the wall. They kept about 100 of the prints. His is next to Macy's department store. It used to be Foleys. I stop by it when I go, and I think about my Baby Boy being so little. He smiled more than you know, and he didn't mind if people approached.
Today, my little boy is a military man, a commander of sorts, as well as a businessman, owning his own insurance agency (basically). He works for a company, but on his own, so it's difficult to explain. He's still in the Armed Forces and has been deployed a few times. I'm absolutely sure that his walking face has been perfected for years as he leads and trains soldiers to be all that they can be. To me, he will always be my son, my baby boy, my hero, and my guardian. If he can teach me things I'll pay attention - - as long as I know he loves me, and I do in fact know that.
Photo Credit: Me
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