Saturday, December 22, 2007

What's My Name?

It was the annual holiday party for some families served by Laurel Advocacy and Referral Services (LARS), a local non-profit that works with the poor in our community. The party is given by the staff of PNC Bank. So there we were--well-meaning middle-class white and African-American men and women with a roomful of kids and their parents. The kids were mostly African-American, plus a smattering of whites and Hispanics.

Santa, a late-middle-aged white male recently retired from the bank, was making his way to his chair to give out the gifts, already worried about messing up the pronunciation of some of the wildly unfamiliar names. He was cornered by a lively seven-year-old boy who asked, "Who am I?" Santa blanched a bit beneath his beard and then boomed out, "Oh, I know who you are!" The kid persisted, "Yeah, but what's my NAME?" Santa scanned the room in a panic. Someone silently mouthed the kid's name. Fortunately for Santa, it was an easy one. "Quan!" said Santa. The kid beamed. "Yes!" He high-fived Santa.

2 comments:

  1. hello i was reading andrew's blog and wanted to answer a question that you asked.there is a twelve step program for overeaters like myself. it is called oa for over eaters anon. might want to check on the internet if there are meetings in your area. i have gone a few times and if i had a car i would go to more of them

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  2. I found your "ED" blog and think that will be a big help for me now. I have to stick around at home a lot more these days because my mother is 98 and lives with us. I've already given up a few outside activities because of this, so those will be the ones I will get back to first. Thanks for the suggestion. I don't LOOK overweight, but my "bad cholesterol" tells the real story. And since my granddad had Type II diabetes, I know I'm walking a thin line.

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