Chapter Three

I'm a bad boy! Mom punishes me so often now that it has become normal. She is so different now. All she does is lay around on the couch in her bathrobe and only gets up to drink or get some leftover food. What happened to my mommy? She makes my brothers and I search for things that aren't really missing and she gets mad if we aren't sure what it is we are even supposed to be looking for. Daddy is gone a lot now - which makes things even worse! I can't believe she broke my arm! She was so drunk and so mean and I thought the hitting would never, ever stop. She made me sleep on the top bunk that night - I wondered why. Now I know, she wanted to have it seem like I fell out of bed so that people wouldn't see her as being a crazy mom that breaks her kid's arms!!!

Chapter Two

Oh...the good times. I can hardly remember those times, but there was a time when things were good. It was almost like we were like that television show "The Brady Bunch" - that's how great life was during those times. My dad was like my hero, a firefighter for Daly City Fire Department and my mom was the greatest mom ever. She always had some fun activity planned for us: day trips, holiday activities, or moments to learn something new. I remember once we got to go to Chinatown in San Fransisco and learn all about the Orient. That night, mom dressed up in a Kimono and we had a traditional Chinese meal - what fun! Boy, were my friends envious of the life I had back then. But above all, my most favorite times were when the entire family would go to the Russian River. When I was in kindergarten mom let me leave school early to begin the family trip. Each day seemed like a new adventure as we went hiking, swimming, and staying at the cabin. Mom and Dad seemed so happy then... What happened?