| Humor Fiction posted October 28, 2012 |
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A picture inspired story (see author notes)
Jamal
by BethShelby
I got me a letter this morning from my Jamal. Sent me a pictur', he did. I done showed it around to all them folks who swore bein' in Army was gonna change him.
Folks say to me, "Betha Mae, thet boy is gonna' straighten' out when Ole Unca Sam get a-holt of him. He thank he so cool now. but jes you wait till he get in thet thar boot camp. He' gonna have to get rid of all thet foolishness he be carrying on all the time. Them Army sargents be mean, and they be gonna' make a man outta' him."
I tol' 'em all back then, I says "Jamal is jest Jamal. I don't beleve no army gonna make no diff'ence with thet boy. He was born thankin' he be cool and he's likely gonna die, thankin' he be cool. I done whupped his butt too many times tryin' to beat the foolishness outta' him, and if I couldn't do nothin' wit' him, they ain't no changing 'em. He is what he is."
This here pictur' don' proved what I say be true. He ain't like them other guys. Here he sits over there in thet Saudi A-rab country, where some of them A-rabs had jest as soon to blow you up as to look at you.
All them other boys be lookin serious and watchin' out for they hides, but not Jamal. He be setting jes' as cool wit' thet gun propped 'tween his knees and him with a pink, green and purple jacket over thet ugly green patchy thang they all wear. He be a-lookin' thru a pair of them bug-eyed pink clown glasses, cool as ever, not worried 'bout a thang.
I 'spect them A-rabs wus in fo a shock when they laid they eyeballs on my Jamal. Thet boy ain't scared of the old debil. Like I done said befo' he joined up, "Ain't no changing him. He is what he is."
I got me a letter this morning from my Jamal. Sent me a pictur', he did. I done showed it around to all them folks who swore bein' in Army was gonna change him.
Folks say to me, "Betha Mae, thet boy is gonna' straighten' out when Ole Unca Sam get a-holt of him. He thank he so cool now. but jes you wait till he get in thet thar boot camp. He' gonna have to get rid of all thet foolishness he be carrying on all the time. Them Army sargents be mean, and they be gonna' make a man outta' him."
I tol' 'em all back then, I says "Jamal is jest Jamal. I don't beleve no army gonna make no diff'ence with thet boy. He was born thankin' he be cool and he's likely gonna die, thankin' he be cool. I done whupped his butt too many times tryin' to beat the foolishness outta' him, and if I couldn't do nothin' wit' him, they ain't no changing 'em. He is what he is."
This here pictur' don' proved what I say be true. He ain't like them other guys. Here he sits over there in thet Saudi A-rab country, where some of them A-rabs had jest as soon to blow you up as to look at you.
I tol' 'em all back then, I says "Jamal is jest Jamal. I don't beleve no army gonna make no diff'ence with thet boy. He was born thankin' he be cool and he's likely gonna die, thankin' he be cool. I done whupped his butt too many times tryin' to beat the foolishness outta' him, and if I couldn't do nothin' wit' him, they ain't no changing 'em. He is what he is."
This here pictur' don' proved what I say be true. He ain't like them other guys. Here he sits over there in thet Saudi A-rab country, where some of them A-rabs had jest as soon to blow you up as to look at you.
All them other boys be lookin serious and watchin' out for they hides, but not Jamal. He be setting jes' as cool wit' thet gun propped 'tween his knees and him with a pink, green and purple jacket over thet ugly green patchy thang they all wear. He be a-lookin' thru a pair of them bug-eyed pink clown glasses, cool as ever, not worried 'bout a thang.
I 'spect them A-rabs wus in fo a shock when they laid they eyeballs on my Jamal. Thet boy ain't scared of the old debil. Like I done said befo' he joined up, "Ain't no changing him. He is what he is."
I 'spect them A-rabs wus in fo a shock when they laid they eyeballs on my Jamal. Thet boy ain't scared of the old debil. Like I done said befo' he joined up, "Ain't no changing him. He is what he is."
 Recognized |
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The misspelling is deliberate. This is a picture passed around as inspiration by my writing group. I hope no one offended by my attempt at slang. It isn't meant to be racist in any way. I know most black people don't use this kind of language except when it is done deliberately among their peers.
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