Inheritence

Patricia O'Neil compares her oldest son Nathan to his father.

Patricia's mother always told her that while Edward and Carolyn took after Thomas, Nathan took after her. Her sister Marilyn said that he was the carbon-male copy of her when she was younger. Her friends always mention him whenever they referred to her appearance or personality. While Patty did find some of it true, when he was born Nathan had inherited her black hair, her nose, her face, her curious nature and his taste in music is definitely from her. Everything else was exclusively his father. It's just that Nathan hardly ever showed it so no one ever noticed, not even Thomas.

She supposed in her situation it should be considered a blessing but she liked the traits he had inherited from his father. She loved both of their quiet nature, you could never tell what he either of them were thinking, not unless you had the right key to open up the treasure chest. She was amazed at his intelligence, just like his father Nathan could just sit for hours on the sofa reading a good book. Their positions were even the same when sitting, their legs would get crooked, their posture would slump and their head would bob towards the book at an angle.

Probably the most wonderful thing Nathan inherited from his father was his sky blue eyes. Eyes that shined brighter than any star in the sky, eyes that could express more emotion than any words could, eyes that she fell in love with that warm, summer day in 1964. He inherited the same eyes that she remembered that held nothing but kindness towards her, sympathy, laughter and joy. The same eyes however that now seemed to hold regret, shame, and contempt. Eyes that never seemed to look at his own son without having to turn away just as fast as he laid eyes on him. Nathan didn't care though, and while as part of her was glad, another part of her was sad it had to be that way.

If their was anything Patricia hoped Nathan didn't inherit from either of them it was his parents either of their guilt. The thing that made her conceive his younger siblings, the thing that kept his father leashed up to that- boulder that always seemed to hold him down, the thing that kept her from taking Nathan and leaving and the thing that kept both his mother and his father miserable.