6. Harlem
HARLEM
VOLUNTEERISM
“Iain’t gon’ hold ya. I wasn’t anything like the man you see here today.
No, I didn’t come from the hood, but my daddy did, and so did several of my friends.
I balled with hood niggas, ran with hood niggas, fought with hood niggas, and smoked with hood niggas.
Looking back on that time, I know some of them was just around because I was the only nigga with a decent car and money.
“That got me into some trouble I wasn’t sure how I was gonna get out of. I was grown; my parents weren’t going to help me out. My grandaddy made me do odd jobs for him to get paid. My whole head was fucked up when I got evicted because I couldn’t pay my bills, and my parents refused to do it.
“That’s when I realized that I wasn’t nothing more than a spoiled, entitled rich kid, only I wasn’t rich.
That was my parents’ and grandfather’s money, not mine.
I had to get out there and make it on my own, and I wasn’t sure how I would do it.
I worked my ass off for my grandfather doing all types of jobs, saving my money, and I didn’t have a social life during that time.
It was all good, though, because it gave me time to clear my head and reorganize my thinking. ”
“How did you end up owning the barber shop you have now?” Quintavious, one of the kids in the mentoring group, asked.
“The hard work that I had done for my grandfather paid off in more ways than one. I had enough money saved to put a down payment on a lease and get a little equipment, but not all of it. My grandfather knew what I had inside of me, just like we see what’s in each of you.
He decided to invest in me, only after I had proved myself to him for three years straight. ”
“What about the real estate you have?” August Malone, another mentor, asked. He and my mentee, Hollis Grove, knew my story, but he was highlighting parts for the kids’ benefit.
“I worked my ass off some more that first year of opening.
After I had saved enough money, halfway through my second year, I brought a foreclosed property, worked with my best friend during our off hours, and flipped it.
I sold it, and I gave him some money to invest in another house.
At that point, my granddad was dying. He was impressed with how I had turned my life around.
“He gave me some more property. ‘For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.’ That’s—”
“Matthew 25:29,” Hollis stated, crossing his arms.
He wore a frown like it was his God-given right, and his arms were crossed defiantly over his chest. Thick lips were pushed out in an angry pout.
“That’s right. When I had nothing, the little that I did have was taken away because I did not appreciate it and use my resources wisely.
When I worked hard to earn a little something, I was given more.
Now I have an abundance, and I don’t take that shit lightly either.
Point is, I worked hard to get to where I am.
It’s easy to screw up and fall; it’s not so easy to pull yourself back up and put yourself together, but you guys have what it takes.
The fact that y’all are sitting in this room with me speaks to that,” I declared, looking around at the seven faces in the room with August and me.
I was a volunteer at the James L. Bigham Community otherwise, you can become too caught up in their problems.”
When I initially thought about hiring him, August told me to slow up and think about it. He didn’t say why, other than that he wanted to make sure that I was making the best decision for Hollis and myself. I had often given Hollis odd jobs, but he needed something stable.
“You’re right.”
“A’ight, man. I have to get out of here and get home to Rose. She’s got something special planned for us this afternoon.”
“That’s wassup. I need to head out and pick up a few things for someone myself.”
“Anyone I know?” he asked with a sly smile.
“Nah. She’s someone new, but I’m determined to be all up in her space, if she lets me.”
“Good luck.”
We dapped each other up, and I headed to the mall to pick up a few items. Before I got to the mall, I stopped at a specialty cooking shop for restaurants to pick up a few baker gifts.
While shopping there, I found a cute matching pink bib apron and chef’s toque with yellow piping and a set of rolling pins.
After leaving the store, I headed into a personalized and custom gift shop to drop the items off.
I requested that her name be stitched on the center of her toque.
I requested they place a sticky bun with the words “Baby Got Buns” on the center of her apron, and I wanted her name stitched at the top of the bib.
The items wouldn’t be ready for a couple of days. I grabbed a bottle of champagne and flowers before I headed back to our side of the town.
I had a few appointments that I needed to take care of before I went to see her.
Time seemed to drag by while I was cutting hair, and I wished that it would speed up so that I could see her.
Professionalism was everything to me, and no matter how bad I wanted to see her, I wasn’t about to fuck up any of my clients on a rush job.
I prided myself on precision and the best cuts in the city.
I didn’t get out of my shop until a few minutes before five, and I whispered a prayer of thanks when I saw her car still parked in its usual spot.
There were a few other cars there, also, and I assumed they might belong to her new staff.
The contractors usually parked out back, close to the dumpsters.
I headed across the street and tapped on her shop door when I saw them sitting at tables, kicking it. She was leaning against the pastry case, and she smiled when she saw me.
That little reaction caused my heart to do a little backflip like I used to do when I was a kid. I couldn’t help but smile. I barely knew this girl, but I couldn’t lie; she had my head gone already.
She pushed off the case and walked to the door to unlock it.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” she asked, holding the door open for me.
“Just checking in on you, seeing how things are coming along,” I replied, looking around at the group of nine people. “Did I interrupt a staff meeting?”
“No, we were finished. We were just sitting around and kicking it. Harlem, this is everyone. Everyone, this is Harlem. He owns the barber and beauty salon across the street,” she introduced with a beatific smile when she looked at me again.
“Hey, everyone,” I greeted, causing them all to chuckle as they greeted me in return.
I was familiar with Princess, Kira, and Warren. The ladies got serviced by Raque and Mia, and Warren was JC’s client.
“He’s cool peeps, boss lady,” Princess stated.
“Is that a fact?” she asked, angling her head and smirking at me as she sat down at a table with a stack of unfolded towels.
I couldn’t pull my eyes away from her any more than she could pull hers from me. My thoughts turned to the bottle of champagne and the flowers that I wanted to give her today, but I could tell that this wouldn’t be the best time, not in front of her staff.
As they all broke up and wandered off, I drifted closer to her and took a seat at the table.
“Mind if I help?” I asked, gesturing to the towels.
“Not at all. Thanks for bringing me coffee and pastries every morning.”
I smiled. “You’re welcome. It’s the least that I can do as part of the welcoming committee.”