fact or fiction
Is it fact or merely fiction? Fact or Fiction explores the myths and beliefs we hold about our family dynamics, traditions, and if there's such thing as a 'perfect family.'
Family is everything
It was about 1:30 in the morning when he came into this world, the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, feet first, and fighting for his life. Jason was the third attempt at childbirth by his mother, and for some strange reason, he survived. The first would’ve been about 10 years of age , the second, oh about 15 to 16years of age, but aside from all of that Jason survived. Around his 14th birthday he began to see images in his sleep about a little black rectangle, stuck behind a wall. He would knock a hole in the wall, reach in for the object, but he always appeared too imbedded for him to move. No matter how he pulled, and tugged, no matter what he used to try to pry the thing out, it just wouldn’t move, and the very moment it seems as if it were coming loose, he would wake up with the fading image of the little black rectangle in his head for the rest of his day. Years went by and for the love of everything he had known Jason just could not figure out why he continued to have these “dreams” about the rectangle. Was it some strange message meant to turn his life upside down?!, was it some mysterious sign of something coming his way?!, or was he actually crazy enough to see this “ thing” for no obvious reason at all?! How could he find out, and who could he even begin to try and confide in to see if some inkling of sense would be made of it all?! Perplexed, Jason considered the fact that maybe there was more to this “mystery” shape than met the eye, and he had better start taking more “interested” approach to the matter. After all, he was 40 years old now, and in the midst of everything life could have to offer, or give for that matter, this wretched “rectangle” would simply not go away from his thoughts, nor dreams, and it was time to get to bottom of this whole “Pandora rectangle” thing, he had enough. On his way one morning to a “shrink’s” office that was recommended by a friend, of a friend, of a friend, Jason was distracted by a small black rectangular shape that seemed to move through city scape with him as he drove downtown to meet this “ Doctor” and could not resist the urge to actually see if that indeed was the case, and little did Jason know that was exactly what it was, he was being followed. It felt as if the “object was calling to him, beckoning him to find its place of rest, and see what was in store for him. It was at that particular moment Jason made the decision to answer the call, and find his precious rectangle, that had plagued his dreams and visions for most of his life, it was time to put an end to not knowing jut what this mysterious shape was. Having no known family throughout his adult life was one of the other things in his life that seemed to enter and exit his thoughts randomly it seemed, just like the little black rectangle did , ever and over again. Jason had no known living relatives, and going throughout life watching other people with their families, and hearing the conversations about who was bringing what to the family reunion this year, and who’s house they going to for Sunday dinner rang in his ears day in and day out, forcing Jason to yearn for family of his own, only to end up with more people in his life that were “like” family, until. Jason, in his persistent search for the little black rectangle, ventured off into a part of the city he normally steered clear of, the “south side”, everyone hated the south side, and Jason was none the different. In an alley, about two blocks long itself, aand about as wide as three tractor trailers, he noticed a small black corner of something protruding out of what appeared to be a wall of of some sorts. The closer Jason got to the object the more and more he felt as if he were falling asleep, it made him feel as if he had finally found “it”, the rectangle, the enigma that antagonized him his whole adult life, and then it hit him, like a flash of light from one of those cheap drugstore cameras with the overly bright flash, it wasn’t just some black rectangle, it wasn’t just some strange vision Jason was having, in fact what he saw this time, was a little black book. He began to look around for something he could use to get it free from the dilapidated structure and located an old crowbar which he used to carefully break and remove the debris surrounding it, when he finally had it in his hands, he turned it over after dusting it off and read the title out loud in an overwhelming wave of tears, it said, Jason’s family!
By David A Rodriguez5 years ago in Families
Blue Ink
Papa Carlisle had been a man of systems. He said life should work like a train—one station leading to another, on a schedule. With order came reliability, and with reliability, happiness. That year I lived with him and grandma, he’d wake up every day at 6am and brew a pot of coffee. With a mug, two cigarettes, and the paper, he took the elevator down to the lobby and sat at a table under the awning out front. From his seat, the fifteen story high rise he managed ran straight toward the sky, like it was barely there. But I remember on those drives to Silver Spring, it towered over the strip malls and office buildings on Georgia Ave. He’d read the headlines, the sports page, then came back upstairs to set his book, leaning on the kitchen counter over a calculator, his reading glasses sliding down his nose.
By David E. Yee5 years ago in Families
The Little Black Book
“Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Elisa! Happy Birthday to you!” with a deep breath Elisa blew out her red candles on a round chocolate cake and made a wish. “What did you wish Elisa?” asked her parents, but she refused to tell them or else it would not come true, so she believed.
By Grace Thomas 5 years ago in Families
The Dirt Road to Eternia Lake
Despite his “safety first!” cruising speed and the tired engine of Dad’s ‘72 Chevy, the winding highway curves made my stomach churn. I slammed my fist against the door’s peeling leather – an effort to make the back window crank ease up – and scrunched my nose at the sudden blast of Redwood sap, motor oil, and forgotten cigarettes. This was a long, tortuous drive to nowhere.
By Christy Bors5 years ago in Families
The New House
It was hers. Finally, hers! After weeks of waiting and hoping, piles of paperwork, hours of praying, repeated meetings with the bank and the relator. Finally, the house was hers! She stood quietly inside the front door and slowly looked around, taking it all in. Gently she closed the door and took a step forward, her boot clattering on the solid wood floor of the living room. Stopping, she looked down at her boots, smiling in total contentment at the sound as she imagined the boys running down the halls in their bare feet in the mornings.
By Jill Wedige Gettert5 years ago in Families
Aster's Inheritance
Aster stared straight ahead, refusing to even blink, just in case the tears burning against the back of her eyes fell. Just a little while longer. She only had to hold on for a few minutes more before this horrid ordeal would be over. She squirmed in the ugly overstuffed chair as the lawyer droned on and on. Suddenly a thought struck her; she didn’t have to stay! She could leave and she would. The mistress employing her was dead; all her hard work had boiled down to a small, square, rather plain black notebook. What was the point of hearing how the old lady had divvied up her assets among her brood? She clearly had not been nearly as valued as she had once thought.
By Lady Coy Haddock5 years ago in Families
Unbreakable
“ A Hustla’s Love” Walking in the bathroom and seeing my best friend on the floor covered in blood I knew something was wrong. So as I sat down beside her I asked her what happened she started crying. I then knew something was seriously wrong. Beside her was a gun and a knife covered in blood. I knew it wasn't hers so I didn't even ask that question. I just held my friend as tight as I could.
By Tecoria Savage5 years ago in Families
As Long As We Have Each Other
How could such a gift be taken away so soon, so unexpectedly? Never will you hear a cry like that; each moan pulling you under, each whimper longing with remorse. And yet he could feel the warmth radiating from the hospital room as her family surrounded her. There they were, speechless, overwrought with grief, silent. But there they were because the very least, and most one could do in that situation is simply be there. He didn't know them personally but knew this was the closest they'd been in some time. Despite the tragedy he knew the love filling that room would slowly mend the pain like sunlight blossoming a flower.
By Jason Hall5 years ago in Families
Now you're gone, mom
My mother’s face was always soft. She was one of those women who always was coiffed and manicured to perfection. Rouge lipstick, dark brown coloured short hair, perfect ruby red nails. Her skin smelled of a time-gone-by; a Bill Blass perfume she had always worn since her days living in the Pierre, New York when my grandfather was vice president of ABC.
By Jessica Patterson5 years ago in Families
Sunshine & Moonlight
Looking back, it was a simple action. I saw it lying there under the paint-chipped bus seat, half concealed by a plastic bag. I didn’t even think of it as an act of kindness, but more of just the right thing to do. It wasn’t old or terribly worn, but I could tell it had been around. Little did I know just how many hands it would someday touch, and how many hearts. How many tears might fall down onto its weathering cover. I turned it over in my hands, hopeful that a name might be inside. When I opened it, I saw neat cursive scrawled over the first page.
By Cherie Robidoux5 years ago in Families
