The Robbery: A life changing experience
I can remember it like it was yesterday, July 10, 2003. I woke up that morning like any other morning; I did my regular hygiene routine and got dressed to go to my mother’s beauty supply store. My mother and I had two customers and my elderly aunt had come to visit us as well. Since it was a beauty supply store we would always keep the door open, we had little thought of the potential danger that could have lead to. It was a normal day, so it seemed, customers came, shopped, and left, earlier that day. At around 4:20pm, all of a sudden out of no where and African American male with a gun in hand, wearing a dark hoodie and baggie pants, entered into my mothers salon demanding us to hand over all of our cash.
I was so frightened, I didn’t know what was going on, at first, but I soon realized immediately after I saw my mother, aunt and the two clients fall to their knees pleading for their lives and crying out,†DON’T SHOOT!, PLEASE DON’T SHOOT!, suddenly a feeling of death came over me I just knew it was my last day on earth, I began thinking of all the goals I had not yet accomplished, my whole life just merely flashed before my very own eyes. He began commanding us to give up all we had including credit cards and cash, we did as he told us yet still he thought it wasn’t enough so he yelled out, “THIS CAN’T BE ALL THE MONEY YOU HAVE, THERE HAS TO BE MOREâ€Â! I became so scared, because I knew we had given him all we had, so I didn’t know what he was going to do next. He ordered us to enter into the small shop bathroom, one by one, while empting out our pockets, I didn’t know what to do I was so terrified of what he was going to do to us once we where all in the bathroom.
At last, we where all inside of the small salon bathroom, he closed the door, and I heard him rumbling on the Inside of the salon moving things around roughly. He then abruptly opened the door and I was so frightened. He then asked if any of us knew how to open the cash register and to my surprise my elderly aunt volunteered and opened the register for him, to his surprise there was only two dollars in there. He then violently escorted my aunt back into the bathroom with the gun up to her head; I was so terrified of whether he would shoot or not, but luckily he didn’t.
We all remained in the bathroom until we felt the coast was clear of the robber, we then slowly opened the bathroom door and went out. The shop was a wreck although everyone was walking about the salon as if they were absolutely sure the robber was gone I still had doubt in my mind. For some odd reason there was a feeling of fear in my heart, and that somewhere in the dark corners of the shop the robber was lurking waiting to attack once again. After we all left the bathroom we called 911 immediately.
After five minutes the police came, being that I was still shaken up from the robbery it seemed as if they took five hours. The police began questioning everyone about what happened, when it came time for me to tell my scenario, I began bursting into tears, because I felt as though I was reliving the whole predicament. The police began checking for finger prints. Along with the police came the local news. They asked me to explain what happened but I refused, because I didn’t want to be seen on television, as a victim of an armed robbery. So my mother and the other victims, testified on the news.
I was just thirteen years old at the time, I felt so terrified and invaded. I couldn’t sleep alone that night or many nights after that, so I ran to my mother’s room each night. I felt safe and secure in the comfort of my mothers arms. I would have never thought in a million years something so drastic could have happened to someone of my age. I would always hear of unfortunate situations like that happening to people, on the news but who would have thought it could actually happen to me. It really changed my perspective of life forever I became paranoid I would always for some odd reason be afraid to sit or be in front of windows. One night as my mother and I was doing hair a scary feeling overwhelmed me I felt as if someone would shoot at me, or that there would be a drive by that I would be caught up in. I felt a strong urge to want to duck and hide, in order to get out of the line of fire, but I knew if I did such a thing I would be looked upon as a fool.
I became frightened by people who seemed mysterious; a simple trip from my house to the car became difficult for me to do, as before I would do so effortlessly and not think anything of it. Because I would always think that there was someone out to get me and I always had to watch my back. I remember a time when I would be in a store or bank or simply outside and there would be a group of people particularly black men or even just one black man walking toward my direction. I would feel so scared of what they might have been up to; I always kept a “better safe then sorryâ€Â, mentality. The reason in which I directed my fear towards a certain race, was primarily because, the person that robbed us was a black male. When ever I would see people dressed in thuggish clothing, such as baggie clothing and pants hanging off waist, I would become petrified.
The robbery changed my way of life, I was no longer free to be a worriless child I would constantly be worrying that he would strike again and this time he might shoot us. I felt like, if something so horrible, that I never thought could ever happen to me in a million years happened to me, I knew that almost anything could happen to me now. I finally opened my eyes to realize that the world is not a safe place to be. He not only robbed me and took my money he also took away my freedom to be me, my life, my feeling of self assurance, and last but not least my courage to live. He left me insecure, helpless and hopeless. I could no longer go to the local convenient store to pick up my favorite snack although I could have asked someone to go and get it for me I feared for their lives as well. A trip to the bank, to me would be equivalent to a trip to the gas chamber. Simply because that’s where majority of crimes reside in, being that they hold large amounts of money, criminals feed upon organizations like that.
My life was changed drastically, but I finally found a way of escape through Jesus. He helped me through all of my feelings of hurt, fear, and bondage. He opened up my eyes to a new light of hope; I finally realized I had a savior who cared for me. Although I got saved at the age of five, and I all ready believed in Jesus, I didn’t really have a close relationship with him. I began praying by my bedside day and night and whenever I was afraid to go into a store or bank, I immediately began praying saying, “Lord please send your divine protection over me, in the mighty name of Jesusâ€Â.
By doing so I gained confidence in God and I also built a stronger relationship with the Lord. I found boldness through him I now had the courage to walk into stores with no fear, sit by windows with no fear; I was finally free from bondage. Jesus had set me free, my eyes where finally open to see and realize the true love of God. I finally knew that no weapon formed against me shall prosper, that I am a child of the highest God. He had his angels camped round about me. He had his divine protection over my life because of my choice to serve him.
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