Big Brother

This morning, I thought of a friend I haven't seen in twenty years.

He used to go to the three MSA meetings we had in Seattle; in fact, all three meetings had pretty much the same group of members.  Everybody knew everybody.

We'd go camping together, eat together at the pizza place in Fremont, where we'd have a buttload of garlic added on top before cooking.  A lot of us hung out together on nights that there wasn't an MSA meeting; we'd go to an AA meeting, or go out for some food or whatever.

One of my favorite guys from the meetings was this old, black fossil.  He must have been thirty-five if he was a day.  But, he was real cool for a geriatric case... 

Now, being an astute reader, you've undoubtedly noticed the title of the post.  Well, that's because this brother was big.  I mean, really big.  And strong.

Back in the 1980's, I was still every inch of six-foot-two (I've lost a little due to spinal disease), but I only weighed about a buck-eighty.  Yeah, I was skinny, as well as having all my hair.

Anyway, my friend would do that kind of crap that big brothers do to their younger siblings.  One of his favorite tricks was to come and grab me by my upper arms, pick me up a foot off the ground, and shake me like a rag doll.

Did I mention that this guy was big?

He'd shake me and laugh at me while I hollered empty threats.  I'd say stuff like, "dude, I'm gonna' kick your ass," while I was flailing around.  Of course, I didn't mean it.  First off, that would have been a pretty damned tall order for a guy who was outweighed by a hundred and fifty pounds.  And second, like so many truly strong people, he was very gentle; he never did anything to really hurt me or piss me off.  He'd just kinda' let me know that I wasn't invincible.

But, when he wasn't physically bullying the mouthy white kid at the meeting, he was a truly gentle person.  He had a quiet demeanor, and a soft, pleasant voice.  He'd talk at meetings quite often, and even though he knew all of us, his forehead would always bead up with sweat.  Funniest thing; this guy who could have bench pressed a small automobile could seem so vulnerable when talking.

Unfortunately, this is one of the guys I lost contact with after I went overseas.  If you went to meetings back then, you'll know who I'm talking about.  And, if you're reading this: dude, I dare you to try to pick my ass up nowadays!

-M