She opens my door and I see my father standing in the hallway. I raise my hand slowly and wave goodbye.
She shuts the door and pulls me against her chest. “I’m sorry you heard that, honey. Everything’s going to be okay. I promise.”
I hear the front door close and his car start. My father’s gone and I don’t think he’s ever coming home.
“What were you building?” she asks. She’s happy now and she’s smiling. Her eyes look puffy, though.
“A big tower, but it was crooked. I didn’t like it.”
“I can see that.” She laughs and sits down on the floor next to me. “You know, I played with Legos when I was your age and I built some of the greatest towers ever.” She takes a large base piece and begins building a solid foundation. “Pass those red ones over to me.”
She quickly starts to add layer after colorful layer. The tower is almost as tall as I am before I know it. It’s wider at the bottom and smaller at the top. “That’s pretty cool, Mom.”
“It’s perfectly balanced, see?” She leans back. I think she likes her tower.
I take one of the Lego guys and stand him on the top. “Look! A super hero,” I say, and I can hear her taking deep, calming breaths.
“Mom, am I going to see Daddy again?” I ask, afraid of the answer.
“I don’t know, Garrett. I hope so. Now, where’s that Lego Millennium Falcon you got for your birthday?” She looks around the room, trying to find it.
“In my closet,” I say and jump up, excited. I find it on the shelf and bring it back to her. I almost knock over the tower, but she grabs it before it can fall over. She moves it against my bookcase and it looks like it will be okay.
“I’ve always wanted to do this one. They didn’t have it when I was your age. Legos back then were a bit simpler.”
“I guess I’m lucky then, huh?” I say and shrug my shoulders. I wonder what it was like back when my mom was a little girl. I can’t imagine her playing Legos. I only picture dolls and flowers. “Didn’t you have tea parties and stuff back then?”
She says softly, “I was a bit of a tomboy. I played sports with my brothers and didn’t have too much time for dolls.” She has four brothers who are my uncles. They’re all cool, but I barely see them because they live in North Carolina. I have like ten cousins too that I hardly ever see.
“Can I be Darth Vader?” I ask her when we dump the contents of the box onto my rug.
“You can be anything you want, Garrett.” She rubs the back of my head and pulls me against her for a hug. “And I mean that for the rest of your life. You know I’ll support you in anything you want to do,” she says.
“I want to be a garbage man. It’s so cool that they get to drive a big truck!” I exclaim, and Mom laughs.
“That sounds like it would be a lot of fun.” She smiles and begins to separate the bags of Legos. She lines them up in number order.
“Why don’t we try to put together the first two bags tonight, and we’ll work on the rest of it throughout the week.”
I nod. “Yeah, this could take a while and it’s already dark outside.”
She rips open the first bag and dumps out the pieces. I immediately find the figures and assemble Darth Vader, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. There are a few Storm Troopers too.
Mom smiles as she begins to put together the pieces that will make up the Millennium Falcon. I play-fight with the figures. Darth Vader tries to beat up Han Solo, but Princess Leia kicks his butt.
I really enjoy these times with my mom. I just wish my dad could be here too.
Hopefully once those people get their money, he can come home, just like he said.
Sam
Past
Villanova, Pennsylvania
Age 7