A Story By: L.B. Horton
Thanksgiving came and went. In what felt like a blur, all I could think about was the two people I thought loved each other the most not loving each other anymore. During my adjustment to my new life I found myself wondering if they loved me the same. I’m sure mom didn’t mean it but there were times during the split when she was kind of cold towards me. Now, me being the person that I am I let a lot of things roll off of my back but this I couldn’t shake. There were times I’d tell her I loved her and she wouldn’t respond she’d just stare. Other times she would answer in a sharpe cold manner that felt like it burned my ears. Dad told me not to worry about it but in my mind I had no choice not to. She’s my mom! Our relationship was never like this, we were always close as could be. She was my biggest fan at whatever I did. I remember my first game starting varsity, the other team caught more of my passes than my own team did. However late in the game I managed to run for an 80 yard touchdown and that’s all she seemed to remember. After the game all everyone talked about was the interceptions I’d thrown….not her. She’d quickly remind them, “but did you see my Kai run almost the whole field and score? And all of those fat guys trying to catch him?” She was never big on me getting down on myself whenever things didn’t go my way. Mom would quickly remind me by saying, “there’s not one quitter in this house son. Not your father, not you and damn sure not me!” I guess I took that to heart and applied it to everything. It felt like she was quitting on our family, one thing I’ll never do is call my mother a hypocrite but it felt like she was being one. My father tried his best to keep things the same between us but I could tell the split was taking it’s toll on him. He was our family’s spark plug, he made everything go. But it seemed like all the wind was taken out him after that conversation I’d over heard them having that morning. Usually a very excited person, especially around Christmas time. He’d go all out every year. We’d have lights hanging from everywhere, presents all over….our front and back yards would be filled with Christmas decoration from Thanksgiving to New Year. But this year was much different, he didn’t have his usual cheer. On Thanksgiving Day I’d asked when he wanted to decorate the house and he simply said, “I’m not.” I wanted to do something but didn’t know what, so I asked my favorite teacher Mrs. Jefferies. Who had recently lost her husband and youngest son in an accident that happened right outside of my school. If I thought my parents getting divorced was hard, I can only imagine what she and her son were going through. There were a bunch of times when I’d try to play in my mind how her son must’ve felt losing a sibling. But I couldn’t, seeing as though I’m an only child. Her son Austin was pretty cool, he was the starting quarterback for our freshman team. Coach Gold raves about the kid, “Lil dude can spin that thing like nobody should able to at 15!” I must admit the kid was nice on the field! There was only one problem…..he talked too much. All he talked about was “when I start varsity…”and my reply would be “have you seen my numbers? You got a while.” But in all actuality Austin was way better than I was as a freshman. We’d known each other for some time, our fathers worked together and were pretty close. So my dad took it hard when Mr. Chuck passed. I remember that day like it was yesterday, my dad came to pick me up from my game but I wanted to stay and watch the freshman. He kept saying “when you see Austin don’t mention what I’m about to tell you.” and went on to tell me about the accident. I really felt for him because he’d finally gotten his shot at locking down a starting spot for next season and that happened. When ever I’d be by myself I’d think of what it would be like to lose a parent. The only thing that came to mind was, taking care of the one that was left. So taking care of my dad during this time became my first priority. My first split Christmas was pretty awkward, especially at mom’s house. They asked who I wanted to live with and I stayed with my dad mainly because I was already established at my school and even though I didn’t have any friends there I still felt comfortable somehow. Plus deep down he needed me to be there more than my mom did….I felt. By time Christmas came they’d been separated for a little over a month. Mom moved about 30 mins way and dad kept the house. He tried his best to make the transition as smooth as possible but he seemed lost without my mom. A man that always seemed to have it together, now seemed so vulnerable and fragile. My dad is a pretty big guy, he’s all of 6’4″ 230 pounds and suddenly he seemed my size. It hurt me to see my dad so hurt, I knew I had to do something. One day Austin and I were walking home from the bus stop and I was trying to convince him that he should run track this season with me instead of playing basketball. These talks didn’t happen often but today was different. He seemed to be listening. We got to the front of his house and he began to approach the front door which his mom wound up opening just before he could touch it. She yelled from behind the screen door, “Hi Makai! How are you?” With a slight stutter I replied, “I’m good Mrs. J. How are you?” She nodded as if to say “Ok, I guess.” I’m guessing my stutter alarmed her and she asked me to come in. As we all walked into the kitchen to sit she asked about my dad and how he was holding up. She mentioned that she’d seen him cleaning some snow off his car the other morning and he didn’t seem himself. I went on to tell her that since the divorce he just sits around and doesn’t really speak much just minimal conversation between the two us. Austin interjected with a quick, “yeah same around here.” I guess Mrs. J was still processing everything. After we chatted for about 30 minutes I decided it was time I got going, I didn’t want dad worrying. As I left, I asked if it would be possible for her to maybe one day stop by and just converse with my dad. She hesitated at first and then said “I’d be glad to do that for you Makai.” As I walked in the door dad asked how my day was and where I’d been. I’d told him that I’d stopped by Austin’s house on the way home and chatted with he and his mom. He asked what we discussed, I him told that Mrs. J asked about him and how he was holding up. I mentioned that I’d asked her to stop by some time to talk to him. He caught a slight attitude, I guess he thought I was trying to inject someone into his business. That was until I expressed my concern and that I felt he was spending too much time alone. Dad suddenly brightened up and said, “you know what son, thank you. You really love your father don’t you?” I replied, “of course I do. You’re my guy!” About two weeks went by and on day I came in from school only to hear my dad’s super loud laugh and there I saw not only Mrs. J but Coach Gold all in our living room.
To be continued…
Respect. 