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- 10/22/2022
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
ARROW - 111. Chapter 111
Sunday was a sad day. The boys were in our bed early in the morning. “Pop, why do you need to leave?”
“I have some business to do with the orphanage and I need to arrange the sale of some property. Grandfather needs to check on his clients.”
“But this is our vacation.”
“Yes, I’ll be back before you miss me. Maybe while I’m gone you could take a train ride.”
That seemed to enlighten their moods a little.
“Pop isn’t leaving until tonight, let’s get dressed and go for breakfast. Then we can plan on doing something today.” This will be the first time Colin has flown with out me. I understand why he is going but that doesn’t mean I have to like the idea.
Dressed, we headed downstairs for breakfast with the Grands. Walking Into the dining room, Colin’s dad was holding court. I heard, ‘I’m flying home with my son, he has some business to conduct that was unfinished when we left. It’ll give me a chance to catch up on the golf tournament and I may be able to get in a few rounds."
I looked at Colin, he heard as well. Whispering, “He may not come back.”
I don’t understand John, he has changed over the last 5 years. I wonder if he is ill. “Colin, while you are home it would be a good idea to have your dad check out.”
“He won’t go to a doctor.”
“Would he go if you told him you were going to get checked out and he should as well.” Smiling, “Make it a father - son outing.”
The boys headed to the table where our moms and dads were sitting. They interrupted Colin’s dad, but only for a minute. Colin and I went to the buffet, Maria went and got the boys. A waiter came with a pitcher of orange juice and a pot of coffee. He set it on a table close to the Grands but a few tables away. I think he was tired of hearing Colin’s dad.
“What are we going to do today, Dad?”
“After breakfast, we are going to the Museum of Natural History. They have all kinds of exhibits for us to see.”
“And no paintings.”
“Thanks, Pop.” The boys laughed. Lighting the tension of Colin leaving.
“Maria, tomorrow we are going for a train ride. You need to think about going with us on this vacation and back to the States with us as well.”
I think the boys forgot about Colin leaving and now they focused on Marie and her coming with us on the rest of our vacation.
Whispering to Colin, “I’m sure she will accompany us on the rest of this vacation but I’m not sure she will come to the States.”
“If she did, she could return to France each year with Marcel and James. Maybe if you seriously talk to her. She could help with the boys.” I was thinking she could help with a certain little girl as well.
Breakfast over, the boys said they had to make a pit stop. Taxis lined up and we were off to the Museum of Natural History.
I knew Colin would love this, we missed it when we were here the last time.
Originally I thought we would be here for two or three hours. I was really wrong, Richie led the group. The first Gallery was the Gallery of Paleontology and Comparative Anatomy. I saw Richie’s eyes light up and I knew we would spend a lot of time here. Particularly when they hit the Dinosaur Alley. Colin had his camera, and now it was pose and snap time.
I didn’t mind, the boys were having fun. The Museum was designed for students and a such was a learning experience. Every exhibit had a card explaining the source of the bones and information concerning the lives of the animal when it was alive.
“Dad, look at the size of this head.” It was the head of Tyrannosaurs Rex.
“Don’t get to close, it will gulp you up.”
“Dad, it is a relic of the head, it isn’t alive.”
“Look, it said it lived 68 million years ago in North America.”
For the next 3 hours, we viewed all of the exhibits in this Gallery. Colin took pictures with the boys in front of an exhibit. I knew what was next. As we were leaving this gallery, the boys saw a place where they were selling books and miniature artifacts. We had to stop, so Colin said. They had brochures that highlighted each of the six galleries giving the history of the gallery. It would take a week to visit all of these galleries.
In the taxi going back to our hotel, “Dad, are we going to visit all of these galleries?”
“Why don’t you look over the information you have on each gallery and then you can decide which galleries you want to visit. You can always save some for the next time we are in Paris.”
That seemed to satisfy them and kept them busy looking over the brochures they had. I knew we needed to get them more cameras and to have the pictures on their current cameras developed.
“Maybe that is something you can do when I’m gone?”
“Tomorrow we are going to go see James and Marcel. Hopefully I can get Maria to agree to go with us to Spain and Italy.”
“Maybe you can get her to visit us in the States. I know the boys would like that.”
“I’ll use the boys to help with that.”
Arriving back at our hotel, “We need to get washed up for dinner.”
It was early for dinner, but by the time the boys got washed, I needed to talk to Colin about his dad, it would be close to dinner time.
“Colin, when you are home, you should get your dad get a check up. His comments about me isn’t like him. It’s almost as if he is jealous. He is drinking a lot more and he talks very loud, monopolizing the conversation with those American guests here.”
“I don’t know how I’m going to do it. If he doesn’t believe there is anything wrong, he won’t do it. I can’t remember when he had his last check up.”
“Maybe you should go and have a check up and take him along.”
I saw the smile on Colin’s face. I knew he was thinking of a way of getting his father to go to the doctor.
Dinner was a somber affair. The boys sat so they could touch Colin. When dinner was over, I called a cab for Colin and his dad. The boys wanted to go with Colin to see him off. I would have agreed to it if it was just the boys and I.
“We will go and see Pop when he comes back. Tomorrow we are going to see Marcel and James.”
Colin had 8:35 pm flight from Charles de Gaul to JFK. Dinner was over at 7:30 which would leave him about 30 minutes to check in.
We stood in front of the hotel, watching the cab departing.
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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