The Argument – Part II “Preach & Tabitha”

It was Preach who started the weekly meet-up for the group, a way to further bind the threads that connected them as friends. Ah, the friends, let’s lay out the characters, shall we?

First up, Preach and his partner in crime, also known to the world as Tabitha. At five foot eight, Tabitha’s stature constantly contradicted her personality—loud at times, very opinionated at others, and always ready to engage in debate, irrespective of whether she held a particular view on the subject at hand. Dark-skinned, giving praise to her Jamaican roots, Tabitha, originally from Chicago’s Southside, is a force born of an upbringing fraught with hardship and deep-set trauma. More on that later, because it comes into play.

And then there’s Preach, whose given name is Phineas. Due to his penchant for giving sermon-like pep talks to his teammates during his college football days at Howard University, he became known to everyone as ‘Preach.’ A product of biracial parents, black father, white mother, Preach grew up on the other side of the nation’s capital, in Anacostia, Washington, DC. It was there he first met Gideon. Back then, their relationship was defined by moments, moments of playing Pop Warner football together; moments of running (and surviving) the streets of southeast DC. And, the moment of them graduating high school (together) despite the neighborhood’s temptation of a future that was seldom, if ever, realized. Each of these moments crystalized into a friendship-a bond. Needless to say, they were inseparable. Perhaps because they were both the only children of their parents. Or maybe they found in each other the one thing they both needed—brotherhood. In any event, they both eventually graduated high school with full scholarships and moved on to play football at Howard, both as wide receivers.

If someone had to define the bond between Phineas, ‘Preach,’ and Gideon in one word, it would simply be ‘fraternitas’.

If someone had to define the bond between Phineas, ‘Preach,’ and Gideon in one word, it would simply be ‘fraternitas.’ Of course, that someone would have to be Latin or speak it, since its English counterpart is ‘brotherhood.’ But I’m tripping over details that will surely come out as the story goes on. So, on to the next couple in their little group of merry friends—Mya and Brit.

“Check back for Part III of The Argument – “Mya & Brit”…