Read Online Running Northwest by Michael Melville - Free Book Online
Authors: Michael Melville
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the bed and covered his son up with his whale blanket. “What story do you want me to read you, Kiddo?” Thomas asked.
“Actually, Dad, I was wondering if you could tell me a story about Mom,” he said quietly, “If that’s okay.”
Thomas sometimes forgot how young Daniel was when his mother died. The boy remembered a lot about his mother, or at least what he could but sometimes he just liked hearing his dad talk about his mom.
Thomas and Daniel made a unique parent-child pairing for the small coastal town they lived in. At Daniel’s school there were, as is the times, many kids who lived alone with their mothers – most of whom were divorced or separated from the children’s fathers. Generally, the fathers were still in their children’s’ lives to different degrees however some not at all. There were also a few kids who never knew their fathers at all for various reasons. Nevertheless, Thomas was, as far as he knew, one of only four single fathers who lived with their children full time and the mothers were not in their lives at all. He was also one of only two “widowers” as the locals called him, despite the fact that he and Sarah had never actually been married. Still, he did not argue about the term. But Thomas was the town’s only single widower father who was raising such a young child, a child that was not even his blood son. He had, in fact, adopted his son after the boy’s mother died. S ince Thomas and Sarah were not married before she died, this gave Thomas and his son a uniqueness to the town, which was part of the reason they had gotten so much help at first when Sarah died, and occasionally still did.
But sometimes at school, when the other kids in his class would talk about their mothers and the things they did, or on certain days like Mother's Day, Thomas knew it was hard for his son. So he did not mind at all when on nights like tonight his son would ask to hear about his mother, he missed her a lot sometimes. Thomas looked down at his son, whose eyes were already starting to droop, and ran his hand through his hair.
“Of course it’s okay, little man. You missing her some?” he asked.
“Yeah, a little bit,” the boy answered quietly looking at his father in the eyes.
He grabbed his sons hand and thought quietly to himself.
“Okay. Daniel, no problem. I miss her a lot too. Let me think of something good,” he said, looking down at his son.
After thinking for a minute, Thomas began telling his son a story about the first time he and Daniel’s mother went to Seattle. They went and saw the orcas, on one of the orca boat tours based in the Puget Sound . Neither one of them had ever been that close to one of the huge black-and-white whales before. He told his son how much his mother had enjoyed it and how beautiful she looked when the whales splashed water all over her with a flap of their fins and how hard she had laughed every time it happened. Daniel loved whales and Thomas thought he would like hearing this particular story about his mother. Thomas liked talking about her just as much as Daniel liked hearing it. They both missed her terribly and neither of them wanted the memory of her to ever fade. About 10 minutes or so into the story Thomas glanced down and saw that his son was fast asleep. One of his tiny arms was over the side of the lab Harley. Thomas leaned over and kissed his son goodnight, gave Harley a quick pet on the head and quietly left the room, shutting the door behind him after making sure Daniel’s night light was on.
After he took a long shower, Thomas stood in front of the slider in his bedroom. It was wide open; he was holding a cup of tea in his hand and the radio next to his bed was playing a song by Miles Davis. He closed his eyes and breathed in the air. He looked out onto the wide expanse of ocean that was now reflecting some light from the moon that was just starting to come over the coastal mountains and the tree line to the east of their
“Actually, Dad, I was wondering if you could tell me a story about Mom,” he said quietly, “If that’s okay.”
Thomas sometimes forgot how young Daniel was when his mother died. The boy remembered a lot about his mother, or at least what he could but sometimes he just liked hearing his dad talk about his mom.
Thomas and Daniel made a unique parent-child pairing for the small coastal town they lived in. At Daniel’s school there were, as is the times, many kids who lived alone with their mothers – most of whom were divorced or separated from the children’s fathers. Generally, the fathers were still in their children’s’ lives to different degrees however some not at all. There were also a few kids who never knew their fathers at all for various reasons. Nevertheless, Thomas was, as far as he knew, one of only four single fathers who lived with their children full time and the mothers were not in their lives at all. He was also one of only two “widowers” as the locals called him, despite the fact that he and Sarah had never actually been married. Still, he did not argue about the term. But Thomas was the town’s only single widower father who was raising such a young child, a child that was not even his blood son. He had, in fact, adopted his son after the boy’s mother died. S ince Thomas and Sarah were not married before she died, this gave Thomas and his son a uniqueness to the town, which was part of the reason they had gotten so much help at first when Sarah died, and occasionally still did.
But sometimes at school, when the other kids in his class would talk about their mothers and the things they did, or on certain days like Mother's Day, Thomas knew it was hard for his son. So he did not mind at all when on nights like tonight his son would ask to hear about his mother, he missed her a lot sometimes. Thomas looked down at his son, whose eyes were already starting to droop, and ran his hand through his hair.
“Of course it’s okay, little man. You missing her some?” he asked.
“Yeah, a little bit,” the boy answered quietly looking at his father in the eyes.
He grabbed his sons hand and thought quietly to himself.
“Okay. Daniel, no problem. I miss her a lot too. Let me think of something good,” he said, looking down at his son.
After thinking for a minute, Thomas began telling his son a story about the first time he and Daniel’s mother went to Seattle. They went and saw the orcas, on one of the orca boat tours based in the Puget Sound . Neither one of them had ever been that close to one of the huge black-and-white whales before. He told his son how much his mother had enjoyed it and how beautiful she looked when the whales splashed water all over her with a flap of their fins and how hard she had laughed every time it happened. Daniel loved whales and Thomas thought he would like hearing this particular story about his mother. Thomas liked talking about her just as much as Daniel liked hearing it. They both missed her terribly and neither of them wanted the memory of her to ever fade. About 10 minutes or so into the story Thomas glanced down and saw that his son was fast asleep. One of his tiny arms was over the side of the lab Harley. Thomas leaned over and kissed his son goodnight, gave Harley a quick pet on the head and quietly left the room, shutting the door behind him after making sure Daniel’s night light was on.
After he took a long shower, Thomas stood in front of the slider in his bedroom. It was wide open; he was holding a cup of tea in his hand and the radio next to his bed was playing a song by Miles Davis. He closed his eyes and breathed in the air. He looked out onto the wide expanse of ocean that was now reflecting some light from the moon that was just starting to come over the coastal mountains and the tree line to the east of their
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