America 1982-Chapter 48 - 7: The Perfect Place
Tommy Hawk had just finished registering the amount of equipment needed when he realized Pam hadn’t returned to school yet.
Although Dennis Herbs had previously confirmed that Saint Vincent’s public security was indeed good when he inquired about hotel prices, because the black residents here didn’t gather and wander the streets like the "black ghosts" in the United States, and they were dressed cleanly and neatly. Every time they initiated a conversation with Dennis, they used extremely polite honorifics, appearing more gentlemanly than Dennis, a white man.
The two walked along the only main road of the small town, enjoying the scenery while looking for Pam, who had gone off to take landscape photos. Within five minutes, Tommy Hawk saw Pam standing in front of a short stone wall that overlooked the sea with a white girl who had reddish-brown hair, both tilting their heads towards each other in poses for a photo. Meanwhile, an elderly black man who had obviously been stopped while cycling by was now holding a camera, aiming the lens at the two of them.
"Click!" The black man pressed the shutter, then lowered the camera and smiled at them, "Very good, would you like to try a different pose for another shot?"
Pam’s face was flushed with excitement as he looked at the girl across from him with an inquiring gaze, "Carly? Can we take another one?"
The girl displayed a warm and inviting smile, "Of course we can."
"Let me show you, we can strike a pose like this... This friend-posing pose is very popular in the United States." Pam seemed even more excited than if he had taken Adderall, his hands hurriedly demonstrating poses in front of the girl.
The black man holding the camera continuously reminded Pam and the girl to adjust their poses so the photo would look nicer.
Tommy and Dennis exchanged glances, Dennis pursed his lips, "Do you know? I never imagined that Pam could, in a country where 85% of the population is black, make friends with a lovely white girl within just two hours."
"Yeah, I didn’t see that coming either. The girls at our high school probably wouldn’t be so cooperative with a guy like Pam who doesn’t know how to please girls, to pose for photos together," Tommy nodded.
After taking another photo for Pam and the girl, the black man carefully handed the camera back to Pam, kindly reminding him, "There’s only one photo studio here that can develop pictures. Just walk down this road for about three minutes, and you’ll see a corner with a sign in English."
Only after the girl left behind a trail of cheerful, clear laughter and bid farewell to Pam in a cool manner, did Tommy and Dennis approach. Pam, looking reluctant as he watched the girl disappear, turned back to face the two with slight embarrassment and explained, "It’s not what you guys are thinking, guys. I was about to look for a staff member of this government building, hoping to take some convincing photographs inside."
The black man who had been ready to leave with his bicycle returned upon hearing Pam’s words, "You want to take photos inside the government building?"
"Yes, sir, we’ve come from the United States, hoping to hold a comprehensive summer camp exchange with a local high school here, but we are not sure if the government building and the Governor’s Office are open to the public," Tommy said to the black man.
The black man blinked, sizing up the three, "So, are you the group of young American student leaders that Principal Susan Ryan called me about, asking me to visit the school? How about this, I’ll go in and make a call, see if she can come over, and we can sit down in the Governor’s Office to chat about it?"
"Sir, are you...the Governor?" Tommy asked, looking at the man, exchanging uncertain glances with Dennis and Pam.
Could this elderly black man pushing a bicycle be the Governor? The country was a member of the Commonwealth, with the Queen of England as the head of state, but since she would not govern here herself, it was her appointed Governor who was the ceremonial leader of the country.
But even if this were a small country, the Governor was still a head of state, unlikely to be pushing a bicycle around taking photos for tourists.
"No, of course not, His Excellency the Governor is working in the Governor’s Office on the second floor," the black man gave a negative answer.
Dennis tentatively asked, "So you’re the mailman here? Sir? The mailman back at my place rides a bike like this to deliver mail."
The black man gave a lackluster smile to the trio, "More troublesome than a mailman’s job, I’m the Prime Minister of this country, Madoff Compton."
If the Governor is just the nominal head of state for this country, then this black man in his fifties is the actual power-holder.
Dennis looked from the black man who claimed to be the Prime Minister to Tommy Hawk, switching his gaze back and forth several times before whispering, "Tommy, I think if you put on a serious face and said you were the head of this country, it would be more believable than this smiling, pot-bellied black gentleman. I can’t imagine Ronald Reagan riding around Washington on a bicycle, taking pictures of young men and women and correcting their poses, to then turn to onlookers and declare he’s the President of the United States."
"Would it be easier to think of me as the black mayor of a small town in America?" Prime Minister Madoff Compton of Saint Vincent laughed heartily, "I know America is vast, stretching far and wide, and this country may be smaller than many American cities, so don’t see me as a head of state, think of me as a town mayor. Welcome to our little town, dear leaders of American youth students."
...
"Mrs. Ryan and Miss Farell share a double room, and us three are in one double room? Ten US dollars per night for a room, Tommy, ten dollars, and you’re not willing to book an extra room. And now, damn it, Pam is clinging to me like a koala!" Dennis lay on his own single bed, speaking in despair, "He even put his hand on my... and that damn hand is doing some other things I don’t want to describe."
Dressed in pajamas featuring Popeye, Pam had rolled over and was pressing his leg on Dennis, his hand resting on him, sleeping soundly.
"The round-trip ticket has already eaten up nearly half of our funds, and we have only half left for things like creating brochures and renting space for informational meetings. Until we actually earn some money, try to bear with it, Dennis." Tommy Hawk lay back, hands behind his head, looking up at the ceiling as he deftly changed the subject, "Have you noticed? This place is exactly as we imagined. The black people here are very friendly, and the head of state is down-to-earth. It’s a perfect fit. I have a feeling we’re going to make money."
"Indeed, honestly, when the Governor of this country posed with me for a photo with a rock sign, his image in my mind dropped below that of the janitor at Lincoln High School, because I asked the janitor to do the same sign and he refused. What a jerk. I like the Governor here and the Prime Minister, at least they’re approachable. They might be heads of state, but they are down-to-earth, unlike our school janitor who always has a scowl, as arrogant as those French emperors going to the guillotine." Unable to bear it any longer, Dennis pushed Pam away and replied,
"Also, the fact that the Governor and Prime Minister addressed me as ’Dennis Herbs, the youth student leader from Lincoln High School in Warwick City, Rhode Island’... I feel embarrassed just hearing it, but they were very serious about it. For a moment, I actually thought I was one of those elite American high school students, not bottom-of-the-barrel white trash."
"Carly..." Pam, roused by Dennis’s movement, mumbled in a daze. Carly was the girl Pam had taken a photo with; she’s the daughter of a white engineer from the Borton Sugar Company in the United States and one of the students at the only high school in the country.
"Speaking of which, I kind of understand why this country is so friendly to us from the United States. Strictly speaking, it’s because America helped them gain independence from British colonial rule and has invested here, creating industries like a sugar factory to increase employment," Tommy pondered aloud, "They still feel grateful to America, that must be it."
"Now I’m an honorary citizen of this country, a white trash American, and in another black country, I’m received as an American youth leader and then granted honorary citizenship by the Governor and Prime Minister. Do you realize? It means I can stay here as long as I want." Dennis brought up the simple welcome dinner again, where the Governor had bestowed the title of honorary citizens of Saint Vincent upon the four of them.
There was no hint of sleepiness on Tommy Hawk’s face; instead, he was excited, "Dennis, America has a visa-free agreement with this place; you could stay here a long time even without being an honorary citizen. What excites me isn’t the title of honorary citizen, but the casual idea brought up by the Governor, Allen Louis, and Prime Minister Madoff Compton in conversation. They suggested including a mock government experience at the summer camp, where American high school students could receive appointment letters from the Governor and try their hand at the country’s day-to-day operations. That’s a brilliant and progressive idea. This town may be small, but it’s a real country, and experiencing firsthand how a national institution runs is precisely what student leaders should do. Just this one thing, and I guarantee lots of high school students won’t be able to resist, and even in the future, year after year, there will be American high schoolers willing to come here for the summer summit. The Prime Minister and Governor are certainly not ordinary colonial blacks; they are blacks who have received higher education in England. They wouldn’t have come up with this idea to increase the country’s appeal otherwise. They know how to do business. Just by launching this project, even if we give them half of the camp’s revenue, I’d be more than willing because I can increase the price. No top university camp can offer this type of service—they can’t let high school students walk into the White House, act like the President, and handle national affairs, but our summer summit can!"
"You know, Tommy, I don’t care about other issues. I just want to say, if we really do a mock government, I hope I can be this country’s Chief Justice and then help the country pass a law as soon as possible." After a pause, Dennis spoke up.
Curious, Tommy asked, "What law? I don’t think it’s necessary, because this place is impeccable, the perfect venue for the summer summit."
Dennis growled in frustration, "I think it’s very necessary to add a law that absolutely prohibits two men from sharing a single bed! Pam, get your hand off; it’s already swollen, and I swear to God..."
