My Buddy, the World Traveler

You never know who you'll meet in the course of being a 'safety creator'. A chance meeting years ago at a hometown neighborhood association meeting where he shared a concern led to my having a buddy who is a world traveler.

Like me, Darrell Gartrell wasn't born in that city. Unlike me, he moved there from his native California and an English-As-A-Second-Language (ESL) business in Japan. I suggested how to navigate the city's 'Old South' stuffiness and new decline of our neighborhood.

He operated an upscale airbnb inside a spacious home his family owned for decades on busy Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard. Lots of Black history in that area-and no shortage of challenges.

He helped me see Japan and its Black experience (Yes, it has one) through the eyes of a Brother who lived there. This beat only reading and watching social media about it.

I recommend the book, '21 Years of Wisdom: One Man's Extraordinary Odyssey in Japan', he wrote about his time there.

One thing we have in common as two very different men is an interest in escaping the ordinary.

His escape from the ordinary has him back in Asia as I type this post, on another personal and professional adventure.

Before he went overseas he visited me in New Orleans, where my escape from the ordinary took me

He's still doing international business and I continue to create community safety. All that's changed are our locations.

I'm waiting to see what's next for my buddy, the world traveler.

Nadra Enzi aka Cap Black does 'Borrow A Brother' volunteer safety escorts for female friends and worthy causes in New Orleans.

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