I left work late today. I was hungry and definitely feeling the low blood sugar surge through my body. I had skipped lunch, but had been drinking tea, water and had oatmeal about two hours before I left the office. Anyway, during my commute, a group of rowdy boys came on board the train. I tried to close my eyes and zone them out, but it was no use. They were loud, began wrestling each other and other shenanigans. Three types of emotions came over me- annoyance, why did they have to be so rowdy? anger, why do they have to use such disgusting language? and sadness.
Why sadness? I got a glimpse of these boys and saw baby faces. All of them dressed in a school uniform- khakis and dress shoes, probably a collared shirt beneath their winter coats. Two of them were very tall. You could easily mistake them for men, if they didn't speak to you. The sound of their voices gave away that they were hitting puberty. They were all dark skinned. When I got a glimpse of them, my annoyance and anger shifted immediately, but not at pity, but sadness. Any one of these boys could be my future sons, or my nephews, etc. Any one of these boys could end up like the unarmed teen who was shot in Ferguson, MI.
My God! Protect these children! Let no harm come to them! Let your angels guide them home safely! Let loving arms embrace them! Father, keep each one of them in your favor!
The real issue tugging at my heart and prompting the prayer revealed itself immediately on my walk home. We New Yorkers, have become jaded. We don't want to be in anyone's business and we don't want folks in ours. During our train rides to and from work, or wherever we're heading, we don't engage so we put on our headphones, turn the music up or "sleep" to drown out our surroundings. Ain't that something? We decided to not correct someone else's kid because, he/she isn't our problem. That kid grows up and becomes a "menace" because they were mislead or misinformed and never shown healthy boundaries. We then pass judgement and ask redundant questions: how is he/she so messed up? where are their parents? etc. Then in our righteousness, we think thoughts like this: they need to be removed from society...locked up...etc. I'm pretty sure there are worse statements being said and posted on the internet somewhere.
Now, if you caught it, you'd have noticed I mentioned the boys on the train were all dark skinned. Yes, I said it. What does that have to do with anything? A whole lot. They're loud and disturbing conversation revealed that they struggled with school. One boy dissed another by stating "why is you a 16 years old and in the 9th grade?" I wondered that, too, actually. Another boy mentioned, using colorful language of course, "how is you gonna go anywhere with those grades?" That one made me laugh inside out of humor.
These boys, each one of them were innocent and are a reflection of what society has encouraged. I don't know if I'll ever recognize them if we crossed path again, but I do know that they'll stay in my prayers for as long as necessary.
Abba Father! Show your mercy and grace on their lives! Let them see you and be in your presence. Let them not fall into folly and foolishness. Let favor and blessings fall on them! I pray right now that they will come to know you and your awesome plan for their lives. Let this young boys become men of honor and valor and not become a statistic. As black men, let them stand strong and defy the stereotypes. Amen.
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