Just about a year ago, Jackie texted me.
“Hey Cuz. Hope you are well. Can you give me a call this evening…”
Anytime someone sends a text asking you to call, that’s a bad sign. It foreshadows something texts can’t handle. “Damn,” I thought.
“Cousin,” she’d called me that since she and Pete got married in 1987; since his last name is Williams, folks assumed I was family. After all, Williams is a pretty unique name for Black folks…that was a joke that never got old. Even now, as I anticipated the worst.
“I have cancer.” OK. I thought, maybe it’s not so bad. Maybe it’s treatable. Maybe they caught it early. Maybe…