The Dream

A Story by Elliot B.

Unlike most of my other stories, this one is real... I only marginally exaggerated details to make the telling of the story more poetic.

I had a recurring dream when I was young, one that has stuck with me for all of my life. I still remember it as well as if it were last night's dream. My daddy and I would be walking through the busy streets of Chicago, and as the dream would progress, he would get further and further ahead of me. I would call out, but he would not turn. As we approached a busy intersection, the light turned green and the"WALK" symbol appeared. As I got nearer to the intersection, "DO NOT WALK" symbol began to flash. The light turned red and the light stopped flashing. I could not cross. I called for my daddy, but he did not hear. As he got further away, I realized that no scream could reach his ears. I just watched him walk on, his back turned on me.

Thankfully this was only a dream. My father has never turned his back on me in my life. My dream however is a sad reality for many poor children in the world. I was blessed to have a father who would turn around when he heard me cry his name. Some fathers just keep walking.