I brought you into this world...

A personal narrative essay about an experience I had when I was 15 years old. This is just the first excerpt; it's a work in progress.

In life, there are moments that change us.  These moments are usually unexpected and, in one way or another, traumatic.  They take something that we hold as an absolute and shatter it.  In the process, we’re changed forever.  I was 15 when I experienced one such life altering moment.  It was a beautiful spring Friday afternoon and my absentee mother and I were living in my aunt’s second home.  It was a small, timeworn farmhouse sitting on a 240-acre piece of land deep in the hills of Kentucky. As much as I hated the isolation of that house, I loved the land.

The house sat at the end of a holler nestled between two large hills.  Half way up one of the hills, I had a nice little spot under a large Oak tree.  The exposed roots stuck out of the hill, forming the perfect place for me to sit. With my back pressed up against the bark of the large ancient tree and the roots cradling me, I could relax and find myself lost in a good book.

On this particular Friday, I was sitting in my spot reading Of Mice and Men for an oral book report I had to give in American Lit class.  My mother had been in Ohio for the past week and wasn’t due to return for another couple of days.  I was looking forward to a beautiful weekend of reading and solitude when they arrived.  I heard my mom’s ‘84 Capri banging its way up the drive.  I looked down the hill as she rounded the turn and saw that a Lincoln Continental followed her.  I recognized the car as belonging to one of her drug-addled friends, Marty.  Several other arms were hanging out the windows of both cars.  I anticipated a weekend surrounded by these cretins and my stomach began to turn.  I slapped the book closed with a sigh and began to trudge down the hill to greet Mom.

Both cars came to a jerky halt in the front yard. Hooting and yelling issued forth as the occupants poured out of the cars.  My mom stood wavering and trying to focus as she spotted me walking across the yard towards her.  She flung out her arms and said, “Come here buddy.”  Her words were a bit shaky.  In a silent prayer, I thanked God she had even found her way to the house as I gave her a lazy hug.

The rest of her crew was pulling coolers and overnight bags out of the trunks of both cars.  Besides Marty, I didn’t recognize any of them.  A twenty something blonde woman in cutoff jeans and a tight Led Zeppelin t-shirt danced around our yard.  She tripped over some unseen object in the grass and tumbled to her back with a little squeak of pleasure.  She reached for the sky and seemed content lying there.  My mom laughed at her and yelled out, “Hey, don’t be rude!  Everyone say hi to the young man of the house.” 

Marty walked over, shoved a cooler into my chest making me stumble back and said, “Here ya go Man of the House, make yourself useful,” placing emphasis on man.

Not long after the unloading completed, my mother’s stereo was blasting and the windows of the house were rattling.  It was 4:00 in the afternoon and the party was well underway.  I excused myself, snatched up my book and headed towards the door.

“Hey!” my mom called to me.  I stopped and looked back wishing I had hit the back door instead of trying the front. 

“Yeah mom?”

“Where are you headed?”

“Just out,” I shrugged.  “I figured you and your friends would want some time to yourselves.”

“Don’t be silly, I haven’t seen you for a week.  Don’t you want to hang out with your mom?”

“As much as I love you mom, this isn’t my thing.  I think you know that.”  I gave her a crooked smile and a quick one armed hug and said, “I’ll be back before dark.  Don’t tear the place down okay?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” she said grabbing the back of my t-shirt.  “I’m serious, what the hell makes you think you can just run and hide in the hills.  I want to talk about, you know, things…school or something.”  The music had gotten so loud at this point that she was almost yelling.  “Sit your a*s down, let’s chat a bit.”

I sighed.  “Mom, for real? You know this stuff bugs me.”  My face heated as I felt the frustration set it.  I knew she’d try this, she always did.

“Sit your a*s down!” she reiterated, setting her hand on her hip and pointing to a chair.  For just a moment, I considered walking out on her then thought better of it.  “Now!” she said.

I conceded and plopped down in the chair.  “Whatever”, I said.  “Let’s get this over with.”

Her raised voice was attracting scavengers because about the time my butt hit the chair, Marty came into the room.  He bumped against the doorframe.  His head was hanging and he held a bottle of cheap vodka in one hand.  His eyes were droopy and he seemed to be having a hard time focusing. 

“What’s goin on here”, he asked.  “What are you doing?”  He looked at me then searched the room for my mom.  His unfocused eyes landed on her and he seemed to realize he’d addressed the wrong person.  “Com’on babe, ditch the kid.  Less hang out,” he slurred at my mom.

She laughed and reached out for him.  “Okay, let’s go upstairs,” she replied.

I slid out of the chair as quite as possible and made my way for the front door.  The last thing I saw as I closed the door behind me was Marty’s hand on my mom’s a*s as they headed up the steps to the bedrooms.

Author's Note

Does it pull you in enough to make you want to read more?

Reviews

[Pryde Foltz]

Yeah … it pulls you in for sure, DL. The reader is hooked on the character and the situation.

[Dara]

Yes, keep going! I have a special affinity to Kentucky also :-) My daughter attend the Univ. of Louisville.

[Q.L. Diehl]

Thank you passionflower. I'll keep going, thanks for the encouragement.