April 4, 2018 at 5:30 p.m.
Clyde Compton: An angry, young man
By Clyde Compton-
Reaching for my robe in the darkness, I tried to gather my wits as I stumbled to the door. Opening the door slightly, I saw a uniform that lately had become very familiar. Standing next to the officer was a silhouette of a person that deep down I knew to be my oldest son.
"Sorry to disturb you at this hour, but I need you to verify that this is your son."
"Yes, officer." I replied with my voice barely above a whisper.
Entering the pale light of the living room I watched as the officer slowly removed the handcuffs from around my son's wrists.
"What charge is it this time?" I asked, more out of politeness than anything else.
"Curfew violation and disturbing the peace," came the response.
"Thank you for bringing him home," I commented as the officer slowly closed the door behind him.
Turning around, I looked into the face of an angry, young man.
"Go to your room before we wake your mother and we will discuss this in the morning."
Returning to bed, I lay awake wondering what we did wrong and could not come up with a good answer. The dawn had always brought a hope for a better day until recently. Looking up as he entered the kitchen, I noticed the same look of anger upon his face that had been there the past few years.
"This is our home," I began suddenly realizing that my own parents had said the same thing to me many years ago. "As long as you live in this house you will do as we say."
Rising, with the look on his face unchanged, he said: "Then the answer is simple. I will have to leave as soon as possible."
As he stood to leave the room, I knew there were things that should be said but the words failed to come to me. Month after month came and went and we were still no closer to a solution until one day I realized it was his birthday, but when I came home from work I was informed that he was gone. Occasionally I would get updates from his mother about how he was doing but contact between him and myself had stopped. Time passed and I finally knew that he must live his own life. I hoped that some day he would look back on what his mother and I had tried to teach him.
"You will be a grandpa soon," my wife informed me one day as we were sitting around the table. Stunned I got up from the table and took a walk to sort out my feelings on this surprise announcement.
Coming home from work one evening, my wife grasped my hand and said "I have a surprise for you."
Leaving the room for a moment, she left me to wonder what was going on. Standing in the doorway with a broad smile upon his face was the son I had not seen for a long time.
"Father," was the only word he spoke but with the look on his face I knew that he had finally learned about life and that we would go through the rest of our lives the way they were intended.
"That's not all," my wife said as she entered the room with the most handsome boy I had ever seen.
Picking the child up from the floor, I felt the love spread between his arms and mine.
Laughing and talking with my son came easy now and the stories were endless. Turning around I saw my wife reach out and smack the baby's hand for getting into something and when the child turned around I saw in his face a very angry, young man.[[In-content Ad]]
