Unexpected Hardships : ' Hey Dad '

“John, what happened?” Officer Marks ask. I just keep crying and I hold Veronica’s head against my chest. An hour later they take Veronica into the ambulance. I just sit on the floor crying. “John, I need to take you in for questioning.” Officer Marks says. I get up and walk with him to the cop car. I get in the back and he

“Dad, can I go over to Ambers’ house to study tomorrow?” Our daughter Catherine asked the question, from about halfway up the stairs. Only her face could be seen as she peered at my husband hopefully, over the banister. I looked over at my husband, knowing what he would say, before he spoke. “Ask your mom.” My husband said to her, while glancing at me, expectantly. I smiled at him, knowing why he was telling her to ask me. He had worked all week, making the long drive from our home in Ashland to his office in Richmond and was hoping I would drive her to her friend’s house, so he could relax at home. My daughters’ hopeful gaze turned toward me, as well. “Madre?” She didn’t bother repeating the question. I hid the little sting of pain, that I always felt when she called me that, behind a smile. “What time are you supposed to be there, and do I need to bring you over and pick you up as well?” She nodded as she answered me. “Yeah, her mom can’t do it today, but I told her I would help her with her math.” Catherine had always made high marks in her school studies; it was something I was exceedingly proud of. “Yes, I’ll drive you, but make sure your phone is fully charged.” I have always been protective of the kids, and it was a long standing rule that they didn’t leave the house without a way to contact me. “I will.” She called out as she went the rest of the way up the stairs, disappearing from my view.

I once read a book about a guy who believes that everyone gets a tragedy at some point in their life. I never thought this could be true, because some people have great lives, and even if they do not how would they decide what the single hardest moment was? Recently my father passed away, and I realized you do not get to decide, you just know. This had been the hardest point in my life, however, the same book taught me that good things can come out of any bad experience if you look for them. Before I could see that I had to deal with many things, such as realizing he was really gone, going to his funeral, and going back to school. I also had to cope with the fact that I would never have the chance to change the relationship I

“I don’t feel so well” Jan’s father had suddenly said one morning at breakfast. Her father, a World War II veteran, stood up and went to go lie down. The rest of the family continued with their day. Michael went to see how his father was. When he tried to wake him his father didn’t respond or make a sound. The 11 year old boy was the one who first knew that his father was gone. The memory of her father’s loss is vivid in Jan’s mind. It was a substantial shock after he had survived the horrors of World War II and then just passed away quietly at home one morning. Jan now understands how

It was a cloudy day, a mild 78 degrees and Lezley McSpadden was taking a drag of her cigarette outside of the local grocery store where she was employed. She was midway through her shift when a friend of hers called and said that someone had been shot by Canfield Green Apartments. Maybe it’s only a mother’s instinct to recoil in fear, but in that moment Lezley could think only of her son Michael. Michael had recently graduated three months before and she wasn’t sure of his

I was on phone with my dad, he was drunk and made promises I knew he would never uphold. Beep, beep, beep, the phone call ended. Tears rolled down my face, my breathing became shallow, it grew harder to fill my lungs. I was having an anxiety attack. “What’s going on?” Stewart asked, leaning toward me. I shook my head, avoiding the topic. “David,” my mom responded simply. Stewart’s typically stern persona softened immediately. He sighed, clasping his hands together, all his body weight shifted onto his elbows that were placed on his

“My sister left home as soon as she turned 18 and my brother left for the army a year later. They said they had to get out of the house. My brother ended up killing himself in boot camp. His note said he couldn’t handle the stress his drill instructors were putting him under. That sent my mom into a tailspin of depression and she had to be hospitalized again. I haven’t heard from my sister since she left home. She could be dead for all we know. She was a little messed up too.”

‘Beep’
I answered the intercom.
“Mr. and Mrs. Taylor are here regarding their missing son” answered Sally, my assistant.
I signaled her to send them in. They entered with a melancholy look on their faces. Hand in hand they had a puppy like look that I couldn’t say no to. So with comfort and reassurance I urged them to share their horrific story. The story was that Matt; the Taylor’s son was reported
missing a few days ago. He was let go from school but never turned up at home. I assured them that I will do all that I can do and sent them home.

The case wasn’t that unique as there have been many disappearances and kidnappings in this town. Most of the kids are just trying to get out of this unexciting and dreary town or just wanted to get away

You never know when something might happen. An ordinary day can turn into a tragedy. November 8, 2016, was that kind of day. My dad was deer hunting so that afternoon it was just me and my mom.I was getting ready for gymnastics practice when my mom got a call. The caller ID read “Community Memorial”. I could hear the fear in my mom's voice as she picked up the phone. “H-hello?” she said. I waited nervously as my mom spoke to the hospital. Five minutes later she hung up the phone. “Your dad fell 13 feet out of his tree stand while he was hunting. He called 9-1-1 and is at Community Memorial right now” my mom said. At that point I didn’t know how serious the injuries were. “Is he ok?” I asked.

“No!” It was my mom’s voice, I ran into the office and saw a gun on the floor, part of the wood chipped out as my dad stormed away. My mom was sobbing, visibly terrified. My mom followed my dad, while Missy took me upstairs with the baby and the pets. She locked the door behind her, and we saw my dad storming away from the garage in his car. After we knew he had pulled away, She led me back downstairs where my mom was waiting for the police. After around three minutes, a police officer arrived. It was after then that my mom made sure my dad couldn’t pick me up from school anymore.

Later that night, as I was falling asleep, I heard muffled voices outside of my bedroom door, and suddenly the door was kicked in by police officers. I jumped out of my bed and ran over to my oldest sister Christine. She held me and tried to shield me from what was happening. I glanced up from Christine’s chest and saw my Uncle in handcuffs and being frog marched out of our conjoining rooms. Then a female police officer walked over to us and in a soft, sweet voice she said “Everything will be alright,” then proceeded to guide us to the living room. We sat on the couch and the female officer turned the television on for us. Christine told me to try and get some sleep. I listened to her, and I didn’t wake up until the next morning.

The brass frame felt cold in his hands. He looked at the picture, no remorse, no longing for missed goodbyes, no resentment, cold was the right feeling. The photograph of the two of them working on the ’69 dodge pickup seemed distant as if the boy and man were strangers. They were. At one time they were close, but after Rainey, everything changed. He thought back to the night he found his father drunk in his recliner playing Russian Roulette with an old .32 caliber Police Special; he hesitated for a brief moment before intervening. A loving son did not hesitate.

He was astonished that he had yet another power. He wondered what else there was to come. Emilio was excited. He felt that energy around him swarm all of his senses, it was a very empowering feeling. It was something Emilio had never felt before. Emilio had always been stepped on and put down, this was the first time he stood up and fought back without being hurt and getting away with it. The memories of being hurt and humiliated on many levels started to swarm him, he just stood there, motionless. He stared into what he thought was real life, was really just memories. Memories of the most brutal moments in his life, his father, Joey, other kids at school, and even little things that put him over the top.

“Dad!? Where are you going?” I asked. “Oh nowhere son just stay home. I'll be back by one in the morning.Don't worry” He said.“Why do you do this to me dad? I said but it was too late. He shut the garage door and sped off into the dark night. I knew where he went. I knew what he did. He did this every night and it hasn't gotten us anywhere. He goes to the Casino 30 minutes away and gambles all of our money down the drain. My dad doesn't have a job so we can't pay rent for this cheap motel we live in and we are on our last strike. The manager says if we don't pay our bill in 7 days, they are kicking us out. I went to bed that night hungry, but I was used to it.

The hardest time in a person's life is often following the death of a close family member. Death is hard, losing someone you love and see on a daily basis causes great grief and sorrow. For me that special person I lost was my Dad. My father died when I was twelve and it was no doubt the hardest time of my life. Our relationship was indescribable I was his little buddy and we went absolutely everywhere together, and when he died it was like he just disappeared from my life forever. As a young boy you really do not know how to react to such a terrible situation. Neil Ibrahim a father of four dies young and it's just you and your brother left to carry the family name. Throughout the grieving process one learns who really cares about his or hers well being and the upbringing of their children without a father, losing your father makes you more responsible and a more humble person because you are all they left behind.