My Grandfather’s Shoes

Christian Garland — My Grandfather’s Shoes

“I’m going to warn y’all, I’m not as funny as my brother Alfonso, so…just warning y’all now. Alright…so I’m gonna let y’all know now, I’m a preacher’s kid. I’m…I grew up in the church: I swear I only missed, like, two Sundays out of my whole sixteen years of life. And, uh…my grandfather — he was a minister. So, you know…he was my best friend. He was my… like…the person I could talk to about anything and everything.

So, I was growing up…I’m about nine, ten. I wanted to be the friend that had…anything…everybody else had; but I always wanted to have something better than everybody else. I was the friend that like…if you got the new video game; I had that video game, but another one, that was just about to come out, that you didn’t know about. So…you know, one day, my friend came outside. He had these ugly sneakers on. I suppose I should mention my grandfather, he was a big dude he was like, 6′3″ and wore like a size thirteen sneaker. So, I used to walk around in his shoes like it was cool: I thought big feet was cool. So, I was like, ​‘Yo, bro, I got those, man! It ain’t nothing…I got those already.’

He was like, ​‘Aight…’

… ​‘Prove it!’

I didn’t have them.

So, my grandfather…my grandfather being a minister or whatever, he gets…the money out of the collection plate. So, I knew where he put the money. It’s not what you all think. I lied: it’s exactly what you think. So…I told him I got the sneakers; went upstairs…I took the money. I did. And it was like two hundred dollars. And I went on third avenue in the Bronx; I went inside, looked at the guy with a straight face: ​‘I want the biggest size you got.’ And so, you know, I got the sneakers and I…I go home.

And my grandfather, he’s…he’s going off. He found out. He was screaming at my uncle; he was like, ​‘Why would you steal my money?’

And my uncle’s like, ​‘I didn’t touch your money- I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ And I walk in. He was like, ​“Where’d you get those sneakers?’

‘Funny story…uh…I went in your briefcase; got the money…yeah…’

He was like, ​‘How much money did you take?’

I said, ​‘About two hundred dollars.’

‘What?’

‘About two hundred dollars.’

‘What, are you crazy? Boy!’

It was…I was…he was screaming, and he said, in come very hollow voice he was like, ​‘I would never be able to trust you again; but one day you’re going to repay me for the money you took…

…I don’t know how; I don’t know when. But you’re going to repay me.’

I cried. It was terrible. Fast forward a couple of years: about, like…two, three years ago. I started…I’m a drummer I played the drums on the radio for Al Sharpton on the radio, nine o’clock. And so…he paid me good and so… you ever had that thought, where you think…start thinking about something and your mind goes (claps)…somewhere else? That’s when I was like, ​‘I remember grandpa said I’m gonna repay him,’ so me…I…I didn’t get McDonalds for two weeks in a row: so I got the money to pay him back. So, I put it in an envelope; and so, I take him out to dinner at his favorite place: Crown Donut on 161^st street.

At first he was skeptical, cause he said, ​‘You got somebody pregnant?’ I was only thirteen, I don’t know what he was talking about. I was like, ​‘No, of course not! Don’t be absurd.’ So, we got our…we got our food or whatever…and, uh…I took the; I had on a coat — it was cold; it was like, the end of October; early November… And so, I took it out of my side pocket inside… I took it out, put it on the table; And he looked in, he was like, ​‘What’s this?’

I said, ​‘You said I was gonna repay you. And you didn’t know how, but I just repaid you.’

And we started crying and hugging, ​‘Aw, I love you,’

‘I love you, too, Grand-dad.’

The waitress came and she started crying cause she thought it was her tip…

And, uh…you know…I just…I’m just glad that I got the chance to fulfill what my grandfather said and got to pay him back and got to earn his trust back from him, cause he said, ​‘You know what? You surprised me. I’m proud of you. I trust you again.’

And that was…that was the last thing he told me because two weeks after that, he died. And…I did the same thing y’all did…awww. Until I found out, he ain’t get to spend the money: I was mad. I was mad at my grandma because I knew she had the money.

I didn’t know what she did with it. And so, a couple of days go by; we made funeral arrangements; I still ain’t know where the money went. I got up, and I went to go view the body and my grandma, she stopped me. She said, ​‘You see that suit and them shoes he got on?’

I was like, ​‘yeah.’

She said, ​‘Your money paid for that.’ 

I was so proud that, number one: I got my trust back from my grandpa; and he was studding in the suit and shoes that I bought him. Thank you.”