friends
This is another of my children's stories; I wrote it during my children's writing course as well. Let me know what you think!
ONE LOST SHEEP
Timothy ran like the wind toward City Park. Crickets’ song and frogs’ croaks echoed on the air around him. But he did not even hear them. He was deep in thought. Please, let Josh be fine, he prayed. It’s been dark for hours! Even when the two of us lose track of time, at least we’re out here together. What could have kept him out ’til 9:30 on a school night?
Tim had been brooding when Mom had called him. At first he had ignored her, thinking it was just another chore she wanted him to do. He’d gladly helped out until three weeks ago when his Dad had come home from Iraq.
“Whatever it is, why don’t you let him do it,” he’d mumbled, without moving off of the bed. If I ignore her, maybe she’ll call him, he’d thought.
“We’ll talk about this later, son, but the matter at hand is slightly more important,” Mom had said, approaching his room at the top of the stairs. Does she have radar ears, or did I say that louder than I thought? “Do you think you could stop feeling sorry for yourself for one minute and think about where your friend Joshua could be at this time of night?”
“ Feeling sorry… Huh? Josh? Did you say he is still out? Out where?” he’d answered, shaking himself out of his reverie.
“Timothy James, that is what I’m asking you! You boys often stay out at the
park after dark, but Joshua hasn’t gotten home yet. His mother was just on the phone
asking if he was here. Take Lightning and the flashlight and go down and check out the park.”
Skirting the edge of the park, he and his dog, Lightning, entered the
wrought-iron gates. He had been thinking about his friendship with Joshua Davis.
Josh and his mom had moved here in the fourth grade, moving away from Chicago
and Josh’s father. Josh had not talked about his home life and Timothy hadn’t asked
too many questions. He was just glad to have someone to skateboard and hang out
with. But lately, Josh had seemed even quieter and Tim had gotten the impression
that Josh didn’t want to go home at night.
Tim prayed silently that God would keep Josh safe, realizing suddenly how
much their friendship meant to him. Josh was becoming like the brother he had
always wished for, especially since Tim’s dad’s leg was injured and they couldn’t
spend much time together outdoors.
Drawing near their hangout under the skateboarding ramp, Timothy called
out to His friend.
“Josh! Are you there? Josh, buddy, come out of there. It’s only Lightning
and me. We want to talk to you!”
No answer. Boy, this would be creepy if Lightning wasn’t here with me!
Tim tried the playground. Josh was neither on the swings nor the merry-go-round.
No luck in the men’s room either. Suddenly Tim thought, “Hey, Lightning, let’s go
see if he may be…” by that time, Tim was climbing into the children’s tunnel. He
shone the flashlight into the darkness, at first seeing nothing. But as he crawled up
into the little “room” at the top of the first section, his light revealed a dark shadow.
“Josh!” Joshua didn’t stir. “Josh, buddy,” Tim called again, and this time,
Joshua moved and answered through a huge yawn.
“Tim, is that you? I must have fallen asleep.”
“Yeah. You sure had us worried! Your mom called our house checking on
you. Hey, have you been crying?” Tim answered.
Josh swatted his hair out of his face, wiping at his eyes and nose with the
back of his sleeve. He was slightly built and looked much younger than his eleven
years. Drawing his knees up to his face, he draped his arms around his scrawny legs
and sighed.
“I’m worried about my ma. There’s an old man hanging around who’s
giving her a hard time. He was goody-goody at first, and when he had Ma all soft
for him, he started throwing his weight around. On top of that, he drinks. I think he
was slapping Mom yesterday but quit when he heard me coming. Things were going
better but now it seems the same old pattern is happening again!
You are so lucky, man. Your old man doesn’t get drunk and mess you and
your old lady around! Your old lady—excuse me—your mom don’t even have to go
out to work. You have warm, cooked meals waiting at home, and you always know
where your folks are. I just love going to your house; it feels—how can I say—like
a real home.”
“Yeah, I guess I am blessed. Dad was away for years, and when I heard he
was coming home for good…well, things aren’t exactly the way I thought they’d be
when Dad came home, with his injury and all. I’ve been too busy feeling sorry for
myself to see my blessings. It must be a big adjustment for Dad, too; I have some big
time apologizing to do when I get home. ”
Josh talked all the way to his house about the situation at home. Tim
just listened until his friend had gotten it all off his chest. He told Josh that he would
get his mother to call Josh’s mom. She was part of a support group called “The
Coalition For Battered Women”, who helped one another through times like this.
They also helped single parents get better jobs and out of sticky situations, by
forming a network who looked out for one another.
“Hey, man, you’re the best friend, Tim. I didn’t want to move to this hick town at first, but now I know it might have been the best thing after all.”
“No problem. I’m just relieved that you’re okay. I was starting to think that something might have happened to you!”
Timothy walked up the steps of his house with a new bounce in his step. He realized now that he had been seeing his world from a selfish point of view. Things didn’t look so bad when seeing them through Josh’s eyes, not bad at all. He couldn’t wait to see the look in Mom and Dad’s eyes. They would sure be surprised when he apologized, but then Tim had always liked surprises!
