'HEY.....Take my picture!!!'

I had walked by a group of boys....camera slung around my neck, head up, looking around  ( not in confidence, mind you, but in the act of trying to 'see' what was in the world to  capture).  I glanced back and one boy...the one with the cigerette in his 15 year old hand....said it again...

'take my picture!!!'

I walked back to him, holding on to my camera strap...once I got in front of him I asked him WHY I should his picture and he gave me the cutest childish grin and said

'cause I'm gonna be famous!'

He was obviously the leader.  I started snapping pictures and once he realized that I was he quickly started organizing the others...'hey man...get here.'  'No...you get down there'...'right here'.  As he did all this  I snapped.  Snapped.  Snapped...and snapped some more. 

I dont know about others but when I'm taking pictures...I get into a zone.  Its like I'm in a bubble and it sounds like I have water in my ears.  I get very creative which is good but this can also be dangerous.  Once I tuned in...I had about 12 boys swarming me. Showing me fake tatt's and one real one ( I asked him if his mama knew)...jumping around, laughing, cracking jokes on each other, pushing each other.  Cussing  ( I called them on that one )  and telling me what they wanted to do with their lives..   And in turn, we were getting a lot of nervous glances from people, my age, walking by. 

Since we were blocking the flow of sidewalk traffic, I decided to end my little session.  As I walked away I heard one say

'she was kinda cool.'

ugh...that felt like a gut punch.  Having two young men...two Black young men..I often get offended when people generalize anyone but especially our youth and here I was with my own prejudiced view of a group of teenage boys.   I just felt extremely small-minded.  I know that, yes...my situation could have ended differently and yes, I need to have  a gut instinct about situations like that but I at least need to SEE the situation first and then judge.  Not judge it and then see it.  Does that make sense????