The Tear That Wouldn't Drop

Stomach grumbling and churning, and beset by sharp pains in his side, eleven-year old Gregory Garrett did the unthinkable while walking to Sayre Middle School one morning in West Philadelphia.
“I noticed a pink circle on the sidewalk. At first, I considered walking past it. But then my stomach churned. I stopped—of all things—and stooped over it . . . I was unaware of how long this gum had been on the ground. All I realized was how ashamed I was because this was something the bums and drunks might do.
“I acted as though I was tying my shoelace as I picked it up. I faked coughing and inhaled it into my mouth, chewing on it as if it had been mine.”
The moment occurred in front of a tree that no longer exists. Garrett would later say his decision was one of desperation and mere survival. It’s also one of many life experiences that have helped define the man that he’s become—a survivor, mentor, father, husband, facilitator, and businessman—and provided him the inspiration to pen his debut book, The Tear That Wouldn’t Drop.