Second Wife

At first I wasn’t going to share this story, but it is so crazy and random – I have to do it.

A few days ago, I was at work. I was sitting in my office preparing for a conference call later that afternoon. My boss called me and said, “Are you in your office? I have some visitors I'm sending down to you.” A few minutes later an older Liberian man and a younger Liberian man came into my office. I shook their hands and motioned for them to sit down. The older one, in his 60s I’d say, walked with a limp and was very rambunctious. He explained to me that he had recently returned from the States and knew the CEO of my organization. He then proceeded to tell me a half hour of stories.

Apparently he knew the founder of my NGO in the 1960s and 70s. He told me that he started branches of the organization in Chicago and Florida for him. He also told me how he went to college in Europe and then when he came to America, went to Alabama and didn't like it because blacks and whites had separate everything, but in Europe you could do what you wanted. He also told me how he sued 3 cities in Florida because when he worked for city government they refused to put him in leadership positions. He finally made it to management and they sent a beautiful white woman to his office to try and trap him. Through conversation she revealed she wanted to make love to him. He said, wow, hold on a second. He then called in all of his staff and told them, “This woman wants to make love to me. This office believes in participatory decision making - what do you all think?” He had a mixed race staff but everyone was upset and opposed to the idea. The woman left in a hurry and he didn’t have any more trouble. He also told me how during the war he refused to leave Liberia, but afterwards he had to leave for surgery because he's diabetic and had complications in Liberia that they couldn't deal with. In Liberia, they wanted to amputate his foot, but in America, they did a lot of scrapings of his leg and his foot was saved. All of this had cuss words sprinkled liberally throughout. (I censored for your benefit.)
 
These were definitely interesting stories and he was an interesting character, but I had a conference call to prepare for and work to do. While he was talking I kept wondering, “How am I going to get this man out of my office?” When a break in the stories came, I said "Wow, you've had quite a life." He said two things make for an interesting life - a good wife and a good job. And then he got ready to leave. GREAT.

He wanted to give me his number. The younger man who hadn't said a word wrote it down for me. I gave him my card. THEN, he asked, do you know __ ___ (I can't remember the guy's name.) I said “No...” He said, “No?? He said you were at his place on ____ Street last week.” And I remembered, “Oh!! He sells gari processing machines. Yes, I met him last week.” Then the man said to me, "He told me that they have a new woman, an American, working here who is fine! I don't know if you're looking for a second wife, but you should go see her."
 
WHAT?!?!?! WHAT?!? One, I can't believe the man told him that! Two, I can't believe he would TELL ME the man told him that! Three, I can't believe he actually did it!!! Later I went to my boss’s office and asked, "Who was that man you sent down to me???" He answered, "I don't know. He said he knew you. I thought maybe you knew him from the States."

Never a dull moment…