Moms & Dads

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Don't have a blast on the 4th of July


I remember two things about Washington Rojas. The first is that we met one time, 14 years ago. The second is that he inspired one of my most memorable opening sentences as a writer.

It could easily have been my story. I remember being a child on the playground behind P.S. 111 in the north Bronx, Fireworks.jpgjoined by my friends and cousins setting off fireworks. I held the M-80 in my hand, chuckling as they all screamed at me to throw it. The fuse was getting closer and closer to its target. Finally one of my friends, I forget who, grabbed the firework and hurled it across the empty playground. I can't remember whether it ever hit the ground. The sound and echo of the powerful explosion has never left me.

I don't know that I've ever fully appreciated what happened that day, even after I met Washington Rojas years later, that one time.

Now, I look at my 5-month-old son and his gorgeous little hands. He slaps at my face in that perfectly innocent way babies explore the world around them. I kiss each finger, and I thank God he was born with all his fingers and thumbs and toes. I will do my best to protect him from the foolishness that could so easily have cost me my fingers.

The photo you see here was shot on July 1 by the Broward Sheriff's Office, which offered an annual demonstration on the dangers of fireworks.

I didn't see that demonstration, nor did I need to. I just need to remember the first words I wrote, 14 years ago, in an article in the New York Daily News.

"Washington Rojas used to be left-handed."

Please, have a happy and safe Fourth of July.

Categories: Rafael Olmeda 2009 (47)


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About the authors
Gretchen Day-Bryant has a son in high school and a daughter in middle school. She’s lived to tell about the struggles of juggling little kids and work.
Joy Oglesby has a preschooler...
Cindy Kent Fort Lauderdale mother of three. Her kids span in ages from teenager to 20s.
Rafael Olmeda and his wife welcomed their first son in Feb. 2009, and he's helping raise two teenage stepdaughters.
Lois Solomon lives in Boca Raton with her husband and three daughters.
Georgia East is the parent of a five-year-old girl, who came into the world weighing 1 pound, 13 ounces.
Brittany Wallman is the mother of Creed, 15, and Lily, 7, and is married to a journalist, Bob Norman. She covers Broward County government, which is filled with almost as much drama as the Norman household. Almost.
Chris Tiedje is the Social Media Coordinator and the father of a 7-year-old girl, and two boys ages 4 and 3.
Kyara Lomer Camarena has a 2-year-old son, Copelan, and a brand new baby.


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