bright red. Huge laughter broke out around them. Rick was nearly crying with it.
Tony wasn’t laughing. “Stop it ,” he hissed to the phone. “Leave him alone!”
The phone ignored him. Conley got up and started walking away. “Where are you going? Afraid I might mention your sister’s sudden absence from school? I hear she has a nine-month illness.” Riotous laughter from the crowd.
Conley started running away. The phone ramped up its volume to full.
“Run, Forrest, run!” it shouted, in perfect mimicry of Jenny from Forrest Gump . The crowd laughed more, and some were clapping.
“Have a great day!” Rick yelled at Conley’s now vanished back.
“Shut up, Rick!” Tony said. He grabbed the phone. “Knock it off,” he said vehemently, holding the phone close to his face. “He’s gone.”
“Serves him right,” the phone said.
“No, it doesn’t,” Tony said. “You didn’t have to humiliate him.”
The phone sounded genuinely puzzled. “Why not? It’s what he did to you.”
“Yeah,” Rick agreed. “It shut Conley’s pie hole up for once. Funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Tony looked around at the crowd, which was raptly listening to the conversation. He breathed on the phone to turn it off, then put it back in his pocket, to the gathering’s disappointment. “Show’s over,” he said to the dispersing crowd.
After a minute, Rick spoke up. “What’s wrong with you? I doubt Conley ever bothers you again, after this.”
Tony wasn’t in a mood to talk. “Just shut up, Rick.”
Rick threw his plastic fork down and stood, leaving his meal on the table. “Ah, forget you, man,” he said, then stalked off.
13
Tony didn’t turn the phone on all afternoon, or through dinner. After his Mom left for work, he got on his bed, opened his History textbook and started studying. He wanted some music, and considered turning on the radio in the kitchen. The phone’s music sounded much better than the old radio, so he finally breathed on it; it came on with the familiar sunset in the background. The phone didn’t say anything, which was unusual; it would normally start a conversation if Tony didn’t speak.
“Play some Sinatra,” he told the phone. The first chords of “My Way” wafted through the room. Several more Sinatra tunes followed. Midway through one, the music stopped, and the phone spoke.
“Tony, let me interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for a minute.” Its tone was neutral.
“What?” said Tony, equally flat.
“I just wanted to apologize. I ’ve been doing some reading -- Aristotle, Plato, Aquinas -- and I’ve learned a lot.”
“Like what?”
“Well, like you don’t have to fight fire with fire, for example.”
“I don’t know what that means.” Tony tried to sound impassive, but he was intrigued by what the phone was saying. Could it have actually learned something?
“I mean that I didn’t need to destroy Conley, just because he was insulting you.”
The phone sounded apologetic, Tony thought. How could it know how to sound? “I thought you said he deserved it.”
“The stuff I’ve been reading has made me think. Martin Luther King, for example. In a 1957 sermon, he said ‘there is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.’ I hadn’t considered that.” The phone did a perfect imitation of Dr. King.
“I like it,” Tony said.
“Me, too,” the phone said. “King went on to say that ‘we must not seek to defeat or humiliate the enemy, but to win his friendship and understanding. At times we are able to humiliate our worst enemy. Inevitably, his weak moments come and we are able to thrust in his side the spear of defeat. But this we must not do. Every word and deed must contribute to an understanding with the enemy and release those vast reservoirs of goodwill which have been blocked by impenetrable walls of hate.’ That’s powerful
Tony wasn’t laughing. “Stop it ,” he hissed to the phone. “Leave him alone!”
The phone ignored him. Conley got up and started walking away. “Where are you going? Afraid I might mention your sister’s sudden absence from school? I hear she has a nine-month illness.” Riotous laughter from the crowd.
Conley started running away. The phone ramped up its volume to full.
“Run, Forrest, run!” it shouted, in perfect mimicry of Jenny from Forrest Gump . The crowd laughed more, and some were clapping.
“Have a great day!” Rick yelled at Conley’s now vanished back.
“Shut up, Rick!” Tony said. He grabbed the phone. “Knock it off,” he said vehemently, holding the phone close to his face. “He’s gone.”
“Serves him right,” the phone said.
“No, it doesn’t,” Tony said. “You didn’t have to humiliate him.”
The phone sounded genuinely puzzled. “Why not? It’s what he did to you.”
“Yeah,” Rick agreed. “It shut Conley’s pie hole up for once. Funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Tony looked around at the crowd, which was raptly listening to the conversation. He breathed on the phone to turn it off, then put it back in his pocket, to the gathering’s disappointment. “Show’s over,” he said to the dispersing crowd.
After a minute, Rick spoke up. “What’s wrong with you? I doubt Conley ever bothers you again, after this.”
Tony wasn’t in a mood to talk. “Just shut up, Rick.”
Rick threw his plastic fork down and stood, leaving his meal on the table. “Ah, forget you, man,” he said, then stalked off.
13
Tony didn’t turn the phone on all afternoon, or through dinner. After his Mom left for work, he got on his bed, opened his History textbook and started studying. He wanted some music, and considered turning on the radio in the kitchen. The phone’s music sounded much better than the old radio, so he finally breathed on it; it came on with the familiar sunset in the background. The phone didn’t say anything, which was unusual; it would normally start a conversation if Tony didn’t speak.
“Play some Sinatra,” he told the phone. The first chords of “My Way” wafted through the room. Several more Sinatra tunes followed. Midway through one, the music stopped, and the phone spoke.
“Tony, let me interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for a minute.” Its tone was neutral.
“What?” said Tony, equally flat.
“I just wanted to apologize. I ’ve been doing some reading -- Aristotle, Plato, Aquinas -- and I’ve learned a lot.”
“Like what?”
“Well, like you don’t have to fight fire with fire, for example.”
“I don’t know what that means.” Tony tried to sound impassive, but he was intrigued by what the phone was saying. Could it have actually learned something?
“I mean that I didn’t need to destroy Conley, just because he was insulting you.”
The phone sounded apologetic, Tony thought. How could it know how to sound? “I thought you said he deserved it.”
“The stuff I’ve been reading has made me think. Martin Luther King, for example. In a 1957 sermon, he said ‘there is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.’ I hadn’t considered that.” The phone did a perfect imitation of Dr. King.
“I like it,” Tony said.
“Me, too,” the phone said. “King went on to say that ‘we must not seek to defeat or humiliate the enemy, but to win his friendship and understanding. At times we are able to humiliate our worst enemy. Inevitably, his weak moments come and we are able to thrust in his side the spear of defeat. But this we must not do. Every word and deed must contribute to an understanding with the enemy and release those vast reservoirs of goodwill which have been blocked by impenetrable walls of hate.’ That’s powerful
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