A Lucky Man

Hello. My name is Cindy Santiago and Hannibal has been my man long enough to allow me to make an occasional entry into his web log. He says he doesn’t care about this blog at all, but I know that he is possessive about it, as he is about everything that reflects on him. Still, we lawyers have a way of persuading people to allow us to do those things we truly want to do.

I wanted to make an entry about last Sunday’s dinner, an entry I know Hannibal never would. I had prepared a simple meal of paella and invited Mother Washington and her grandson Monte to join us. After the blessing Hannibal followed a ritual I have observed. He tasted his food, thoroughly chewed and swallowed that first bite, and then said, “This is delicious, baby. Thank you.”

“Why you always got to do that?” Monte asked him. I suppose it was a teenage thing to ask. Mother Washington was about to land on the boy like a ton of bricks but Hannibal just held up his palm to still her.

“Never forget to be grateful, Monte,” Hannibal said. “You can’t ever earn all that you get.”

“That’s why you're saying thank you all the time? Cause it’s more than you deserve?”

Hannibal smiled. “I don’t ever want to lose sight of the fact that I’m a lucky man.”

That's what he said: "I'm a lucky man." But that's my Hannibal. Gratitude is a big thing with him. He'd hate my using this term but the fact is that he is very self aware. By that I mean that he is so aware of his flaws and weaknesses that I swear he feels as if he's gotten away with something whenever he receives the smallest blessing.

Monte is growing up in a world full of presumption, of people feeling that they are entitled to something. But for Hannibal, I think humility blocks all that out. He once told me that one of his greatest heroes was Lou Gehrig who, when cursed with a fatal disease, stood publicly to declare how lucky he was to have had the life and career he had.

I know that, in secret, Hannibal has sent notes to teachers who helped Monte succeed in school. And I've heard him tell Monte that he needed to go with his Grandmother to church, not to hear a sermon, but to give thanks. I really hope that Monte understands the lesson Hannibal is trying to teach him. A good man is always thankful.

Hannibal once told me that his father was raised in the South. He died in Vietnam when Hannibal was quite young, but he has said that one of his strongest memories of his dad was of his saying, "I'm beholden to you," when someone did him a favor, or saying, "Much obliged." I think that's why Hannibal says "Thank you" all the time.

It's old fashioned. But it's part of what makes you feel that Hannibal Jones will help you if a disaster strikes in your life.