Coincidence? Not Likely! Midwayers! |
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From the Desk of George Barnard. Written By Denis Neumann. Edited by George Barnard. This story goes back to about 1953, and at the time my mother and I were staying at a beachfront hotel in Santa Monica, California. I would have been 15 or 16 years old at the time. One evening I walked into town to see a movie, and after the show I walked back by a slightly different route. It was about 9:30 pm by that time. I was taking little notice of my surroundings. I knew that if I headed due west, I would soon find the beach, and then locate the hotel. I soon approached what I guess was a bar, where there was a group of young men standing around outside having a conversation. There was perhaps just 30 feet between us, when a few of them noticed me, and moved into the middle of the sidewalk to intercept me. At that very moment, I sensed I was going to be in big trouble. This was nothing like a main street, and there were no other pedestrians, or even any cars driving by. Before I could really make a decision as to whether to turn around and run, or keep walking towards them, two policemen stepped out of an alley just a few feet in front of me. At this point, the details of what I recall are a little hazy, but they did ask me in a kindly way what I was doing there at that time of night. After I explained I had been to a movie, and was heading back toward the beach, they told me how to get back to my hotel, and they also said that I shouldn't have taken the route that I did. They walked me past the group by the bar. Moments later, when I looked back, they were talking to the group. I realized at that moment that I had likely made a rather close escape from a bad beating or even worse. In writing this for the 11:11 lists, it occurred to me that neither before this timely event nor after did I ever see two policemen on foot patrol in a semi-residential neighborhood like this. And their timing was perfect! Thanks again, Midwayer guys! © 11:11 Progress Group. |