Aaron under Construction

What the hell am I doing here?If his grandfather hadn't lost his mind, Aaron McKade wouldn't be stuck in Monday-morning bumper-to-bumper Los Angeles traffic. Instead, he'd be managing the West Coast branch of the family business -- McKade Import-Export, an office that served as an agent for companies seeking Latin American markets for their products.Perturbed with the recent turn of events in his life, he clenched his jaw and studied his surround-ings -- his new place of work. Santa Angelita, the South Central Los Angelesbarrio,was worlds away from the affluent Bunker Hill District where he lived in the famous Bradshaw Building.Rows of Spanish-style stucco houses painted in vivid blues, greens and purples lined the side streets, giving the residential area energy...hope. A few homes showed off neatly trimmed lawns and masses of fuchsia bougainvillea, but most of the dwellings required major renovations -- and some even a wrecking ball. Sensible compacts or junkers sat parked in one-car-garage driveways. The BMWs and Lincoln Navigators of the drug dealers were nonexistent, and the small bikes and toys cluttering the yards suggested more and more young families were moving into thebarrio.The commercial boulevards, on the other hand, struggled to survive. Boarded-up buildings covered in colorful murals depicting religious scenes and festive celebrations, along with vacant lots, broke the line of nail-care salons, auto parts shops and store-front churches comprising the core of the business district. He hadn't seen one chain supermarket or drugstore in the past eight blocks, only liquor depots and a mom-and-pop market.The light switched to green, but traffic remained at a standstill while commuters boarded a city bus a block ahead.What had Pop been thinking? Aaron loved his grandfather more than anything, but now wondered if dementia had finally gotten the best of the old man. Patrick McKade had dropped a bomb during last week's phone chat. The conversation had switched from the Yankees spring-training schedule to a more alarming topic."Aaron, I neglected to teach you a very important lesson -- responsibility,"his grandfather had said.Responsibility.The word made Aaron shudder."Son, it's my fault that you're immature. I should have demanded more from you."Aaron's gut had tightened with humiliation, hurt and resentment.Immature?He was thirty-three years old!The bus pulled away from the curb, belching black exhaust. Traffic inched forward as Aaron studied the map spread across his lap. Riker Avenue had to be somewhere in the vicinity. Frustrated, he shoved the directions aside and glanced up just as a little old lady stepped in front of the truck. He slammed his foot on the brake, wincing when the seatbelt bit into his shoulder. The front bumper stopped a foot from the woman's wire pull cart.Pursing her lips, the granny glared at him through the windshield. Aaron unrolled the window and stuck his head out to apologize, but the words froze in his throat when the old biddy flashed her middle finger. Stunned, he watched her baby-step across the street, forcing cars in all lanes to stop for her and the dirty lump of fur curled up at the bottom of the basket."You must stand on your own two feet, Aaron, and assume responsibility for yourself and your future."First the crazy cart lady, now the voice of his grandfather refusing to get out of his head. What was this -- revenge-of-the-geriatric-set day?"I've been too wrapped up in expanding the company all these years, or I would have noticed that your brothers have been picking up the slack for you."There were times when Aaron wished with all his heart that his parents and grandmother had survived the private plane crash that had taken their lives when he was a year old. Widowed and burdened with raising three grandsons, Pop never noticed the way Aaron's brothers lorded over him. IThomas, Marin is the author of 'Aaron under Construction', published 2006 under ISBN 9780373751280 and ISBN 0373751281.