A coffee and a change of heart
March 03, 2003 ~ 12:32 p.m.
I went up to the caf� Sunday morning to get myself a cappuccino, and was joined by none other than the Cappuccino Kid himself. We looked through the papers and about halfway through our coffees, Cap yawned, threw a bored look out the window and said to me, �There�s something on your mind.�
�It�s called a cap, Cap,� I said. �And, it�s not so much on my mind as it is on my head. It would have to go through my cranium to be on my mind.� I pointed at my forehead and smirked. Cap yawned again.
�Now, if we could get serious,� he admonished. Cap reminds me of the male schoolteachers of my youth in that any humor at all was deemed out of context and subsequently dismissed.
�I�m thinking of joining the military, Doug.�
�What, here?� Cap stared open-mouthed at me for a second and then regained composure. �I don�t think they�d take you, mate, being from another country, like.�
I rolled my eyes. �No, not here, you schmuck. Back home. The U.S. military.�
�I see.� Cap rubbed his chin in mock contemplation. �Well, think you�re cut out for it?�
I was tracing the perimeter of the coffee mug absent-mindedly. �I�ve got to do something, Doug. I don�t want to shout from the sidelines anymore.�
�I understand.� He looked at my long black wool coat with the American flag pins plastered all over the lapels. �I daresay, though, it doesn�t look that way to me.�
�How do you mean?�
�What I mean,� Cap said, sounding a bit irritated, �is that you are in another country, where a majority of the population opposes war, and you�ve got all those flags pinned to your coat.� He studied me a bit longer and said, �Everybody who sees you knows where you stand. You don�t even have to open your mouth. People can pretty much suss out your position themselves.�
�I put these pins on just after the peace march,� I said. �Just so that, as you say, no-one would be left with any doubts as to where I stand.�
�And you�re clearly prepared to deal with any, er � differences of opinion that may arise from those pins what you�re proudly wearing?�
�Yes,� I said forthrightly. �I am. And I have been ever since that protest.�
�You know, there aren�t that many people out there who�ll announce their beliefs as broadly as you�re doing when they know how outnumbered they are.�
I said nothing. I continued tracing the circular rim of the mug. Cap drained his coffee and gave me a knowing look. �Well then, still thinking of joining the military, captain?�
I looked up at him. �No. Not anymore.�
� M.E.M.
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Copyright � 2001-2007 by M.E. Manning. All material is written by me, unless explicitly stated otherwise by use of footnotes or bylines. Do not copy or redistribute without my permission.
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