Upside Down World

Or "Tragic Tales of the Town"

Sometimes I think that world has gone crazy.

Last week I was at work when an acquaintance came in. She put her bag on the counter and seemed flustered and anxious.

"Oh Joe," she said, "Thank goodness you were off yesterday! The most awful thing happened and I am so glad that you weren't here to see it!"

I turned around and gave a quick smile. "What happened?" I asked.

"Well, I was walking down the sidewalk sipping on my drink, when at least four boys on bicycles zipped past me as fast as can be. You know how those young kids are, no respect for anyone. I don't know how fast they were going, I almost dropped my drink but I jumped out of the way at the last minute and they barely missed me!" she said visibly distraught.

"That's crazy ," I said starting to frown a little, "Good thing they missed you and that you are okay."

"Well, I'm fine Joe," she continued, " but they kept on going passing people, not caring who was in their way. They weren't paying any attention. They kept plowing down the sidewalk right past the bookstore. As they were crossing that area a woman was pushing her baby across in a stroller. Wouldn't you know it, BAM, one of the kids smacked right into the stroller. The baby flew out of the stroller, onto the sidewalk. The mother started screaming and I couldn't even believe it was happening. The boy got onto his bike and he and his friends rode off as quickly as they could.!"

"I rushed over to the baby , the mother was crying and security called the ambulance. There were like eight policeman there and they had the paramedics take the baby to the hospital. I was so worried, Joe. I heard the baby was still in ICU." she said wide eyed.

I felt disturbed and deeply annoyed with time. It is amazing how quickly terrible things can happen. The difference in milliseconds it can take to destroy a lifetime is unfathomable.

"Those stupid kids." I said shaking my head in disbelief.

"You are telling me," she agreed , "I was so upset I drove around the area looking for those little monsters. Sure enough I spotted them, about half a block away, behind an abandoned restaurant. There was six of them. I didn't confront them but went back and told the police what I saw. They were so relieved I didn't try to talk to those boys by myself. Apparently they have been receiving complaints about those teenagers for the past two weeks. It was possible that at least two of them had guns.!"

"Wow," I said, " I can't believe that. That is so crazy."

"Yeah," she said, "I am glad you didn't have to see it. It broke my heart, I tell you what Joe .I have to get out of here but it was great seeing you Be careful out there. It is an upside down world."

I was trying my best to process all of this information when one of my security guard friends walked in the door.

"Hey, how is it going," I said nodding a hello, " I can't believe about all of the madness yesterday with that baby being hit by the teenagers on the bike. So crazy."

"What baby?" said the security guard.

"You know," I said, "The baby. Those teenagers who ran into the stroller yesterday in front of the bookstore. I can't believe they ran. I hope the cops caught them."

"What cops?" he said blankly.

"The eight of them that were here yesterday after the incident. The ones who called the paramedics that took the baby to the hospital. That poor mother!" I exclaimed.

"Ummmm…" he started, "I worked all weekend, and I am pretty sure that nothing like that happened. In fact, I know it didn't. There has been no crime in this area for the past six months. We haven't even had a car broken into this year. It has been so boring!" He rocked on his feet and in fact did look pretty bored. He even yawned.

"So," I said, "There were no cops, no baby being hit in a stroller. No crazy teenagers hiding nearby?"

"Nothing like that." he said "But I will take a glass of water if you don't mind."

I thought about the tragic tale she had just told me and remembered some of the other ones she had told me over the past year. The time she went to the gas pump and how she soon realized that it had been tampered with. The hose began spewing gas everywhere. Gasoline on the car, on the pumps, on her clothes. If it hadn't been for the attendant running out, yelling at her to not dial her cell phone, the whole place would have burst into flames. I remembered all of those trips she had told me about, all of those strange characters she met along the way.

Thinking back about all of the details, I couldn't help but laugh. There were elements of danger, surprise, and adventure. There were twists, turns, shady characters and stories we could all learn from. She always pulled from an endless supplies of facts and details. It always kept me interested and wondering where the story would go next. Moving in to this next year, I realize maybe the truth isn't always as important as we make it out to be. I guess I really don't care if you lie to me, just make it a good one.