It Only Takes a Word....

...to save a life

"Wait--Wait, check this out --" T held up his hand and went over to the next orange vermillion-colored pillar on the bridge, squeezing past two Asians with cameras in the process. He tapped the top of a emergency alert box pasted against the pillar, one that didn't have a phone, but a button. Ebony darted over to see what it was. Yeah, she'd seen these before. she actually thought it was kind of funny...and sad.
The sign over the alert box read  "Crisis Counseling. There is Hope. Make the Call. The consequences of jumping from this bridge are fatal and tragic."
"That is hecka funny!" T said. "OK, OK, take my picture --"
"Of what?"
"Just do it, girl."
"But didn't you hear what I was sayin' before?"
T sighed. "Yes, I did, more preaching and speaking kind words about Jesus or else getting cursed."
"No, that's not what I said," Ebony put her hands to her hip. "I said he talked about how Jesus may use you to speak kind words to someone, and you may actually end up helping that person, or you miss out."
"Miss out on what?"
"I don't know, helping someone else, I guess."
"Ebony, just take the picture."
"Alright, alright," she sighed slightly.
Ebony smiled now as she found the camera application on her iPhone. No, this was a beautiful day, with a rich blue sky hanging above and cool blowing air coming in to the San Francisco Bay. She raised her eyes to the sky and smiled. Now she aimed the iPhone at T -- who posed like a hip hop artist next to the alert box. She took the picture.
"OK." she said.
"That's it. Can you film me too?"
"You said take a picture."
T shook his head. "I want you to film me too."
Ebony sighed and found the video camera application now. As she aimed it at him, T suddenly flashed a false panicked face mixed with a look of despair as he pointed a finger at the alert box button. "Oh help me man, help me, I'm gonna jump!" he busted out laughing.
Ebony laughed too, but then quickly stopped herself. "Hey, that's not funny."
"What come on! It is." T said, looking at the alert box.
"But it isn't," she said, still grinning. Then she grew serious. "You know how many people try to commit suicide by jumping off this bridge?"
"I don't know and I don't care," T said. "Don't be all uptight just cause you're into Jesus now."
"Oh please, I ain't being uptight," she insisted. They now walked over to the four-foot barrier-railing as joggers, bikers and tourists continued to walk by. "Seriously. I read this article about this boy who jumped off the bridge and lived to tell about it. And he'd been here crying and no one even noticed. What's worse, if someone had just came up to him and asked if he was OK, he wouldn't have done it."
"Now how do you know that if the fool jumped off the bridge? He's dead." T questioned critically.
"You didn't hear me, I said he jumped and lived to tell about it." Ebony emphasized. "And the point is, he was hecka depressed and no one even took the time to speak to him. just like what the pastor was saying on Friday. Just one word could make a difference."
Ebony had begun going to a college youth group on Friday for several weeks now. Each time she learned more, and she found herself gravitating toward the Bible passages that were taught. Not to long ago she asked Jesus to take over her life and now it seemed certain things were become more important to her -- like what this pastor spoke about, and the reality that she didn't like T's attitude.
"Our words are powerful," the youth pastor had quipped, and then teaching from the Book of James, he'd said words could either help, they could even hurt someone. Ebony was guilty making of nasty comments about people and their hair or how they dressed, as she had always kept up her hair and worn cute clothes. Now she was trying to be more cautious about not doing looking down on others if they didn't dress "right."
"There you go again, just like what the pastor said, " T grumbled. "I still don't get what you're talking about."
"OK, listen, you know how we like to hate on people because of how they look ? Well, it's like your tearin' that person down or something. We can dog someone out with our own words, and we don't know what that can do someone. But maybe we can say something nice to someone, and it may change their whole life."
"What? Please!" T moaned.
"They have child development studies on this kind of stuff -- like when a parent keeps calling their kids stupid, then that kid grows up to become stupid. Or think about this -- " she pointed to the tourist ans pedestrians walking around -- at this point there wasn't that many, just an Asian family and a woman in jeans and a baggy jacket to her left. "How many times have you passed someone who's going through something and all they need is an uplifting word?"
"Yeah, OK, whatever," T muttered. He laughed. "That's cool -- look at that --" he pointed toward the Alcatraz island in the distance. "Bet you I could swim over there."
"No you can't."
"Why not, if I started from that harbor and swam, I could make it."
"It would be impossible."
"Now see, you're a hypocrite!" he pointed a finger at Ebony. "You're not encouraging me. You're tearing down my dreams, I'm hurt now." he laughed and she shoved him, somewhat playfully.
Ebony did think T was fun, but sometimes she did get annoyed at him. And it seemed he was a little more annoyed just because she was getting serious with God. They'd been friends for a couple of years now, but the last few months they had some tense standoffs too. Now Ebony walked along the railing, surveying the beautiful sight around her. She'd always loved San Francisco and she was glad she lived in the Bay Area. The two had decided to hang around San Francisco all day, and that's why they were here at the Golden Gate Bridge. She surveyed the tall spindling cables of the bridge span, and the cars that went back and forth behind them. And then the water below, a reflective rich, greenish blue under the bright sunlight. Boats decorated the bay, including a couple of wind surfers and tourist tugboats. She also studied the people around her. For the most part, the bridge's pedestrian path consisted of joggers and tourists. The Asian family, now to her right, now made their way to the parking lot. To her left was the same woman in jeans and baggy jacket. Ebony stood a little closer to her now and she could tell the woman was older, maybe in her forties, with brown, shoulder-length hair that needed a good combing-through. The brown, baggy denim jacket looked two sizes to big. She couldn't see the woman's face, but she could tell the middle-aged woman appeared contemplative, quiet, isolated.
She was about to comment about how ugly the woman looked, but Ebony stopped herself. Wait, that would be mean.
The woman rested her arms on the railing, staring at the Bay, in deep thought.
"Hey, is it still considered hurtful if you're just tellin' it like it is?" T said, taking out his own iPhone.
"What do you mean?"
"Like, if you're ugly, you gotta be told you're ugly. I mean, it's better to hear truth right."
"T!" Ebony whined.
"I'm just saying," T implored. "I'm serious, there's some ugly folks around here."
Ebony sighed. Yeah, she was getting sick of him. "T, there's a way you can tell someone the truth and not hurt them. And that's not the point. The point is, your words can hurt, or they can encourage."
"Look at her," T said, pointing to the woman. "She's got get herself a new look or somethin.' Aint no man want her looking like that."
"Shut up," Ebony nudged him in the stomach.
"I'm just saying. Like you, you dress cute and stuff, but some people, I mean, I'm just sayin', you gotta represent."
"Whatever," she said.
T headed over to the woman.
"Where you going?"
"I want to get a picture of both of us." he said. he walked over and Ebony followed. "Excuse, miss?"
They were two feet from the woman now. She had her leg raised up and her hands firmly gripping the railing, but now she brought her leg down and turned fully to them. That's when Ebony noticed the distraught look on her face. The woman's hazel eyes expressed deep sadness.
"Can you take our picture?" T asked, holding out his iPhone. The woman nodded sadly and took the phone.
Ebony felt a tug of pity in her heart ans she asked, "Miss, are you OK?"
The woman looked at her, solemnly. "I am OK."
Part of her wondered what the woman felt, but the woman didn't saying anything further, just forced a smile.
"You sure?" Ebony said. "Is there something I can pray for you about?"
That got the woman's attention, she cocked her head to one side, as if surprised at such a question. "Uh...no, that's OK, I'm fine."
"OK."
"Why don't you two pose over here," the woman gestured to her right. "Right by the city. It's a nice photo, the sun will catch you two nicely."
T and Ebony went over to the area and posed. The woman snapped the photo with T's iPhone and Ebony pulled out her own iPhone for the woman to take a picture with as well. When she finished, she handed both phones back to T and Ebony.
As Ebony slipped her iPhone back into her purse, something deep inside urged her to say something more to the woman.
Say what?
She wasn't sure, and the woman had already turned around, but that urgency nudged at her again.
She felt she needed to tell her ...
"Excuse me," Ebony called out. T noticed. "Miss?"
The woman turned back around.
"Uh...God loves you, you know," Ebony said. That seemed kinda cheesy.
"What?" The woman asked, taken back from the comment.
"I mean...." OK think. Ebony paused and then continued, "Whatever you're going through, you'll get through it, and you're more valuable to Him then you know it, know what I'm sayin?"
The woman stared at her for a few seconds, as if she'd never heard that before, and then that look of despair sort of melted away. The woman smiled. "Well thank you."
"I just wanted to tell you that," Ebony said.
The woman smiled and turned back toward the Bay as Ebony felt T nudge her in the ribs. They both started heading back toward the parking lot.
"What was that?!" he said. Ebony rolled her eyes and continued walking down the pedestrian path. T followed her. "Hey, I'm just sayin', why are you going around talking to crazy fools."
"T, I just wanted to encourage her -- didn't you see how she reacted?" she pointed out. "It's just like what that pastor said, about words that uplift someone when they're down."
"Oh please," T said. "Ain't nothing you say is gonna make a difference."
Ebony said nothing. It seemed like their friendship was sort of going downhill, and she wondered if she should be hanging with him, especially since he didn't respect her faith in God. She thought about this as they made their way back to the car. Ebony stole one last look a the middle-aged woman, who remained standing there.
And the middle-aged woman looked at the young black girl and her friend as they walked down away. The woman smiled, somewhat perplexed at the sudden words spoken to her: God loves you and you are more valuable to Him than you know it, and you'll get through it.
What made this girl, whom she didn't even know, say that?
The woman had been here for some time. It had been part of her plan, you know. But she had been here reflecting on how her husband had left her for a younger woman, how she had been estranged from her adult son ,and how even her sister and parents weren't there for her when Tim abandoned the marriage. They never even called her, they never even stood with her. She'd felt utterly alone.
That's why she had decided to end it that day. She had driven her car to the Golden Gate Bridge, a favorite spot, and she'd left a note under the windshield wipers of her car. She had walked out into the middle of the bridge, with the intention of hurtling herself over the bridge's four-foot railing and into the water below. That's what she was about to do when that young girl and her boy friend came up.
But now those words softly spoke to her -- odd, peculiar, but somehow -- it made her feel better. She was never a believer in God before, but why would, of all days, someone say that to her? That she was valued?
Maybe, if that was the case, it was worth living.
Maybe, maybe she would get through this.
And if that's the case, maybe she wasn't alone.
She smiled at the idea and looked out at the Bay once more.
She suddenly realized her plan to jump wasn't such a good idea after all. No, she could face another day without Tim. Just one day at a time.
With that, the middle age woman smiled and walked off the bridge to her car to go home.

Author's Note

Please comment and tell me what you think. A review would be good too.