Page 28 - Reason To Sing by Kelita Haverland

Reason To Sing

Right now, my Auntie Frances is really, really sick. Today
Mommy left in a big hurry to go and see her. Daddy is taking
care of us. Vian and I have skating lessons in town at the rink
and then, after lessons we get to skate just for fun. Daddy drops
us off but doesn’t stay and watch. We are on our own until he
comes back to pick us up. I can see him standing at the end of
the rink, waiting for us to come off the ice. I grab my sister’s
hand.
“Come on, Vian, let’s go. Daddy’s here.” I’m excited.
Hopefully he will buy us a treat.
As we skate closer to the boards, I can see something is
very wrong with him. His hair is messy and he is crying. “Your
Auntie Frances has passed away,” he whispers through his tears.
“She’s gone now. She’s gone forever.”
Daddy is sobbing. His hair keeps falling in his face and
even though he reaches up to brush it back, it falls down again.
Vian and I stand, dumbfounded. Dead? She’s really dead?
Like in heaven now and forever? Neither one of us moves an
inch. We just glare at him, waiting for him to tell us what to do.
He finally opens his arms wide to hug us both. We try to
steady ourselves on our skates and hang on to him for dear life.
We squeeze him as tight as our skinny arms can squeeze.
He is acting so different. My stomach is churning with that
old familiar feeling. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, but I
am worried. I can’t even think about my Auntie right now, just
Daddy. I am panicked and my heart is galloping.
“Ccc’mon … c … c … c’mon, girls, I’ll help you off with
your skates.”
Why is Daddy slurring his words? He’s walking funny
too. Lopsided. We all wobble over to the bench and I can feel
people staring at us. It gives me the creeps.
I know he wants to help us, but he just can’t. “It’s okay,

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