Chapter Seven

My brother and I were placed in a car. We were in the back seat. It was early morning and I whimpered, just a little, because the sun was shining so bright in my eyes. I rubbed my eyes, as if I was going to make that brightness disappear.

I looked over at my brother who was sitting beside me. He looked different. I looked at his face and his eyes were masked. His skin looked white. I compared his skin to the skin on my arm and yes, they looked almost like twins.

His hair reminded me of my daddy. Oh, daddy, where are you? I haven’t seen you in, well I don’t know how long but it seems like so many forever days. My brother looked like my doll, skinny and stiff. Well, maybe stiff wasn’t the word, but he sure was quiet. I wonder if someone had told him to keep that big mouth shut!

Big blue eyes, long lashes, and lots of messy wavy hair. The picture I had in my mind of our daddy, sure made me think they could pass for doubles. He stared out the window and didn’t look back at me. I wonder what he saw that I couldn’t see.

When I looked down at myself, I was dirty. I remember daddy telling mama, ” Get those kids cleaned up. They look like dirty, little pigs. Get in there and give them a bath.” It sure didn’t look like I had had a bath, in fact, I don’t remember getting a bath for a long time.

My clothes were dirty, and my shoes and socks were gone. I don’t remember losing them, but I don’t remember wearing them either. I felt my tummy growling. I think I am hungry, but since no one was paying any attention to me, I would keep quiet. It had been a long time, but when my thumb found my open mouth, it felt good.

There was a man in the front seat sitting by mama. I know he wasn’t daddy because this man’s skin looked like mud. He must have been real dirty and when he looked back at me and my brother, I saw he had big, brown eyes and I think daddy’s were blue eyes.

To be continued…

It Was What It Was

Memories make you smile or cry

They can be hidden for years gone by

And then out of the blue, they pop in your head

Sometimes you laugh, other times you wish you were dead.

You get the dusty scrapbook out

You stretch on the couch and look about

You suddenly remember something you’d forgot

That favorite word or forget me not.

Memories can be the most beautiful things

Or they can turn and make your heart sting.

But isn’t that what’s part of getting old

We can live for today or remember the story told

.Written by,Terry Shepherd09/28/2021

Chapter Six

Sometimes we get used to a certain schedule. We don’t always like it but somehow we adjust and that is how I felt at that small age. I didn’t understand that this did or didn’t have anything to do with love from a parent. I only understood that it was.

I could barely remember the way life was before my new life; it had seemed so many life’s ago and I even learned to accept the pain. I learned to always watch over in the direction of my brother. Seeing him there near me, was like a pacifier being inserted into my mouth when I was younger.

My brother was very quiet. I don’t know what happened to him when they picked him up and took him out of my sight. Did people do the same to him as they did to me? Maybe my brother was strong. I never saw any tears. Maybe he learned how to go to someplace and play a game like I did when I went to the Fairy land.

My brother was too young to talk more grown up like me, so there weren’t conversations between us. Sometimes I caught his eye when I looked into his eyes. I knew we were speaking to each other this way but I didn’t know how to help. Was he asking me to help him, to help us? I don’t know, but things were about to change…

To be continued….