The "Faces of Strangers #28" Story

R. Kelly

It was an ordinary day.  Just parked the car at Bobby's Marina and headed over the small walking bridge toward the boardwalk in Philipsburg.  Only one cruise ship in harbor today so the Philipsburg boardwalk shouldn't be too crowded.  We began walking, looking in the open stores that line the east side of the boardwalk. Carol found an interesting clothing store so I decided to look for a game of dominoes that might be going on along the area next to the docks.  Some years they invite me to join them in a game and it's always a great time.  Well, no games but I did have a great time visiting with R. Kelly as he calls himself.  R. Kelly has a boardwalk stand where he will draw your portraiture for you for a fee.  I have seen him drawing locals and tourists for years, but never had the chance to talk with him.  No customers today so I wandered over to his easel and when he saw me coming he pointed to a padded chair and told me to have a seat.  Neat guy who is probably my age who has drawn faces for the better part of the last 10 to 12 years.  Told me that he used to be a carpenter, building houses and resorts all over the island.  His boss wanted him to become a foreman, but R. Kelly said he wasn't interested in becoming management so he declined the invitation.  Seems it was more than an invitation since his boss said that since he wasn't interested in moving up, he was going to have to let him go.  That's when he turned from part-time artist to full-time artist.  I told him I used to teach wood shop, metal shop, drawing and printing.  His face lit up as we began talking about the building trades.  As we were talking I noticed Carol standing on the other side of the boardwalk watching us.  I excused myself and thanked him for the conversation.  He invited me to stop and chat again when I made another visit to Philipsburg's boardwalk.  "I'll be back sometime soon," I told him.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.