[uplifting brass music]
- Muhammad: You used to go to work
and come back home around 2:00 a.m.
So in the morning, you used to send me
to go clean your car.
I would vacuum, take out the mats,
smack them against the pole to get the dust out.
And then, I was maybe 14, 15 and I was doing that,
and a kid from the neighborhood just began making fun of me.
"Hey, cab boy, taxi boy!"
That's one of those experiences that made me embarrassed.
- Mohammad: At that time, my financial position was no good.
- Muhammad: Mm-hmm. - Mohammad: So you said,
"I want to help you."
- Muhammad: After your 18th birthday,
you can get your taxi license.
We drove together for a couple of days.
- Mohammad: Right. - Muhammad: You showed me
the streets, bridges, everything.
And I started college and went to law school,
and I was still working part-time, driving,
and then I began working for a federal district court judge.
The judge at that time was in his late 80s,
so I used to help him carry his briefcase down.
And one day, the judge called for a car service
and you came to pick him up. - Mohammad: Yeah.
- Muhammad: I put the briefcase in the car,
we waved at each other, and you drove the judge home.
The next day, the judge and me were having lunch.
I said, "The driver who picked you up yesterday was my father."
The judge was very upset at me
that I didn't introduce him to you.
I, at that point, never really liked
talking about my family.
We don't come from Park Avenue.
And I was embarrassed that you drove a taxi cab.
But not any more.
As I grew older, I'm proud, you know.
I think you've done a great job.
- Mohammad: The bottom line is this:
I got everything in my life, my friends, my family.
I am happy.
- Muhammad: And in my life,
if I can emulate that by a fraction,
I would think that I've lived a good life.
["Sage the Hunter" by Blue Dot Sessions]