24 November 2014
…Epilogue…
After Dads death, Mom was able to work for herself to better her own situation. With a lot of help from Lori, Brian, and I, Mom was able to get back on her feet in a low cost apartment. She got a job working as a waitress at a steakhouse. Which reminded her of her life back in Texas. She was able to pay for her art career too, now that all the monthly income wasn’t spent on Dads alcohol infirmity. After a while her money started to escalate and she was able to start buying luxuries that she was never able to have before. After that thanksgiving, the next time we all saw each other was at Christmas. Mom was, for the first time, able to actually get us gifts. After our big Christmas dinner, mom told all our kids the story of Christmas. The next morning we all sat around the Christmas tree exchanging gifts. “Here”, Mom said, “This one is for you Jeanette”, as she handed me a small box. I looked up at Mom and saw her smiling as wide as her face would let her. I looked inside the box and saw the little doll that I had when I was very little but had to leave behind when we left our camp at the beginning of my story. I was so surprised she had found another one of the exact same dolls. My happiness was tangible, and I immediately stood up and gave her a hug. Mom did the same for Brian, Lori, and Maureen.
After finally coming home to live with mom, Maureen was able to get over all of her problems and gain a new outlook on life. Mom saw the way her and Maureen were living and decided, with much debate, to finally sell the Texas land for over 1 million dollars, and was able to revitalize her bank account and buy herself and Maureen an apartment in Manhattan. We all had trouble getting over dads death but we had our families to comfort us. I had John and our kids, Mom and Maureen had each other, and Brian and Lori had their families. Subsequent to Brian’s divorce he found a good woman and settled down with her and they had a few kids of their own. The same happened to Lori and myself. Mom and Maureen have always lived together, I guess Maureen never got the attention she needed as a child. She is getting it now and has no need for a husband and kids. Brian decided that it would be a good idea to actually build the glass castle as a sort of final tribute to dad. The cost of the project deterred Brian and the idea shortly turned into a dilemma and was terminated because the amount of money needed wasn’t tangible for him. I only think of dad every now and then, but when I do, I always look up into the stars and see my planet which appeases me, and I know that he is somewhere up there. Building the eccentric glass castle all on his own watching down and protecting us in his own special sort of way.
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