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Show (e76 My father sucked h i s t e e t h and went on. "Even though I had parked iy car away from the o f f i c e and -.it was a f t e r office hours, the lock was-tried and the phone rang almost c o n t i n u a l l y . " He sighed. My mother nodded. "When he s t a y s with me, the phone rings constantly, even before he a r r i v e s ." I had trouble f e e l i n g s o r r y for him. Hadn't he asked for all this r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , holding both hands out to receive it when it was offered? Again, the image of him weeping, with Brother lusser's hand upon h i s shoulder, f l i t t e d through my mind. Perhaps he had not ^ •-. --??zz* •. t r u l y wanted i t . Just as some mornings I wished to spend in, "the park or on the front lawn, r o l l i n g the baby around on the soft new g r a s s , b u t I must stay inside or s i t t i ng upright on the porch, notebook on my l a p , pen in hand, to record the thoughts and dreams of the day. He seemed so t i r e d , although my presence seemed to refresh him. I was almost a s t r a n g e r , someone new to impress with the breadth and q u a l i t y of h i s l i f e. "You should go on a v a c a t i o n , Daddy. Why d o n ' t you take Mama back to the motel where you spent your honeymoon? You could spend the night and d r i v e back. It would be my g i f t - for your anniversary." He smiled and shook h i s head. "People won't l e t go of me long enough for a p l e a s u r e l i k e t h a t ." Heat rose from-my stomach. It seemed u n f a i r that he and the mothers could not have some golden, r e f l e c t i v e moments, now *at most of the c h i l d r e n and much of the poverty was gone from tteir l i v e s . Didn't people have any regard for his advancing age ^ Physical problems? Couldn't they a p p r e c i a t e the fact t h a t the others and most of h i s c h i l d r e n had seen too l i t t l e of him most of toeir l i v e s? |