Stateside, a gas station. I drank a frozen blue beverage too quickly, and was struck down by a punishment this entire nation knows, and accepts, and has named.
The drink is called a slush. Ice, sweetness, and a blue that does not occur in nature. The day was hot. I was thirsty. I drank like a soldier at a river.
The pain arrived in my skull like a war horn.
Behind the eyes. Above everything. Total. I gripped the roof of my car. I may have made a sound.
"Brain freeze," said the cashier through the door, with no urgency whatsoever.
It has a NAME. The affliction is so common it has a household name, like a cousin.
"Tongue on the roof of your mouth," called a man at the pumps. He did not look over. He prescribed the remedy mid-pump, casually, the way one mentions weather.
I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth. The war horn faded. The healer nodded at his pump, finished, and was gone in a Chevrolet.
In my land, punishment follows crime by way of courts and seasons. Here, the sentence is instant. Drink with greed, and the ice strikes the mind directly. No trial. No appeal. Perfectly fair.
And here is what moves me. EVERYONE has felt it. The cashier. The healer. Children. Elders. An entire nation united by the same small lightning, all taught the same cure, all passing it on to strangers at gas stations, free of charge.
You cannot fully distrust a country once you know it shares one pain.
The freeze does not punish thirst. It punishes haste.
I finished the slush slowly, like a scholar. Blue tongue. Clear mind.
Then at the door I forgot everything, drank deeply, and was struck down again.
"Tongue, hon," said the cashier, without looking up.
Discipline is a journey.
@BarstoolNOLA As dysfunctional as this state and city may have been (and still is) our state and city officials deserve a lot of credit for not giving up on the dome after this. They could’ve scraped it and we’d have lost both the @Saints and the @PelicansNBA. Kudos to them.
Service Above Self in action! 🤝 Giving back to our community not only makes a difference in the lives of others but also brings us closer together. Every act of kindness counts.
Happy people naturally give back, not out of obligation, but because their joy inspires generosity. When our hearts are full, we feel motivated to share that happiness, uplifting others and strengthening our community.
How it started ⏩ How it's going
@CampKawartha began in 1921 as a Rotary boys camp. Now open to all, it stays rooted in it's founding values: curiosity, gratitude & nature-based mentorship 🏕️ Discover more: https://t.co/3bFrl9X0Qf