Summer Evening, Edward Hopper, 1947 |
It was a hot summer night following the end of World War II. A woman's voice could be heard above the call of the frogs and crickets. "Charlie, you can't leave, it would break mama's heart. She would be lost without you with Daddy gone."
Lauren, Charlie's sister, was trying to dissuade him from enlisting in the Army on his 18th birthday.
Lauren, Charlie's sister, was trying to dissuade him from enlisting in the Army on his 18th birthday.
"The war's over," Charlie explained. "This is my chance to see the world, learn a trade, and make a life for myself. Daddy would be proud."
"Daddy died in the war. You think he'd want you running off and leaving mama and me. To risk ending up like he did?" Lauren was not only scared for her brother, she was angry. Angry that he could just up and leave them. It wasn't mama's heart that would break as much as her own. Not only was he her brother, he was her twin and her best friend. Losing him would be like losing half of herself.
Reading her thoughts, as he did so often, he said quietly, "Don't worry, you won't lose me. I'll be safe. Daddy will be watching over me. It's time for me to go."
Written for Magpie Tales #77