Daddy

"Mom hit me, Dad. she hates me. she’s always hitting me, and I know she doesn’t like me at all"

"Come on now, its ok" he said reassuringly "she must have just gotten angry, what did you do now?"

"Nothing Dad"

"I know you Tim, come on now, I promise I won’t scold you"

"Well Gabe took my pencil first, he took it and broke it into two Dad"

"It's ok, it’s just a pencil, am sure you have another one"

"Yes Dad but still it’s my pencil, I should be the one who should decide when to
break it"

His dad laughed. "Its ok son, your mom loves you am sure. She loves you more than she loves me even, forgive her this one time, ok!"

"Ok, but she loves you more. She cries every night ever since you left"

"Hmmm" he exhaled a mixture of helplessness and sadness.

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"Dad is it bad to talk to girls. Everybody in class says that something bad will happen to me if I talk to them."

"No son, it’s not wrong. just very irritating"

"Yeah..." he said smirking and nodding in agreement.

"There was this time in college, I had just had enough of them, and their
gossiping and fussing and being cute, whew..."

"Then how come you married Mom?"

"Son, you will find a million reasons to avoid girls, but you won’t find any when it comes to the one you love"

"Why did you leave dad? Was it because of me?"

"Tim, no. You are the reason I still come here, you are the only part of my life that I still wish to be with Tim, you were not a reason, and there was no reason. Some things in life happen and they must be accepted for what they are Tim, I love you Tim"

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"look dad, look am going today, I’m going to Princeton look, here it says in my passport and my ticket, Timothy George Baker Jr, j17, Air India, look and its stopping over in Frankfurt. That's in Germany dad, Germany’

"Good, son I’m proud of you" he said beaming.

"I will miss you dad, I truly will"

"Don’t worry Tim, I’ll be here as always, whenever you need me"

"Thanks dad"

"So tell me, how is that girl doing?"

"Yeah, she’s fine" he said blushing. "She’s going to do her PhD in geo-something-
something"

"Enough already stop it, your cheeks look like apples"

"Am not blushing ok, it’s just the sun or something"

"Is she ok with you going and all"

"Yeah dad it’s not like am married or anything, we’re just going out, or something"

"She seems fine Tim, don’t let her go. Hold on to her"

"Yeah dad, sure will"

"Tim, are you done?" Tim’s mom asked, standing about ten feet away near a cab by the road.

"Goodbye Dad, I’ll see you, I promise" so saying he jogged to the cab.

"Packed all your luggage, eat well don’t skip meals..."

"Ok Mom"

"Go see your aunt and uncle, they’ll be happ..."

"Ok Mom"

‘Call me every month...... at least’ she added uncertainly.

"I will Mom, now can I go?" he said pulling away from her embrace.

"Yeah Tim, love you" she said tears welling in her eyes.

"I love you too mom" he said. ‘Airport’ he told the driver and climbed in, "take care mom" he said and the cab moved off the curb.

She stood by her door waving and crying, her little boy had grown up, he was all she had now, and she was proud to see what he had become, just like his father. She wiped her tears and looked across the street, "god bless his soul" she said and went into the house. The autumn leaves were falling around her home and across the street a gust of wind blew away, and the gravestone read.

                           
                                        Timothy George Baker, Sr
                                                1922-1950

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