| I Chose WRONG | My brother or Dad will go to jail and I must choose who My name is Dana. I'm 13 years old, and I just decided who was going to jail, my father or my brother. When I was a baby, my died. My father was left alone to take care of me and my five years older brother. He had to work to provide a better future for his children, but it turned out it won't be easy. He hired a babysitter to look after my brother and me, but soon my father realized he didn't have enough money to pay her. He fired her and sought help from our neighbor. But the old lady couldn't make any significant decisions about us. She would call my father to let him know that I had a fever or that my brother had hurt his arm while chasing the ball. My dad would ask the boss to get out of work so he would be close to us. His boss had been patient for a long time because he knew that my father at home had the role of both parents. But one day, his boss told my dad that he had to fire him. Having lost his job with two young children, my father was desperate. Bills were piling up, and we needed food and diapers. My father was looking for a job, but everyone rejected him when they heard that he was a single father. I was growing up, and like every girl, I needed dolls and dresses. My dad was sad because he couldn't afford anything. So, he decided to do something about it. One day something happened. My father came home with a bag full of groceries and sweets. I was thrilled to see the chocolate after a long time. My dad laughed at how happy my brother and I were. From that day on, we had everything. My father brought home food, clothes, toys, and paid bills regularly. He was still looking for a job but without success. And then he gave up. I was still little and didn't understand from where my father was getting money. When I was about 10, my brother brought a bicycle home. My father was surprised. He asked my brother where he found the bike. My brother said a friend gave him a bike, but my dad knew it was a lie. "You have to get the bike back," my father ordered, but then my brother said something that shocked me. He said to my dad, "I will return the bike when you return everything you stole!" I was angry with my brother for calling Dad a thief. But then my father told my brother that he should not steal and that he shouldn’t do everything that my father did. Was my father a thief? One day, while we were at the store, my brother looked around and then took a cellphone from a shelf and put it in his pocket. I was surprised and scared. When we left the store, a door detector alarmed. My father asked my brother if he had stolen anything. My brother admitted that he took the cellphone and gave it to my father. When the security chief arrived, he asked my father to show his pockets. My dad took a cellphone from his pocket that my brother stole and the security chief called the police. As the only witness to the event, a police officer asked me what had happened. I didn't know what to answer. Should I say that the thief is my brother and destroy the future of a young man, or should I my father and send him to prison? So I decided to say I didn't see what happened. I hoped that my father had made the right decision by taking the blame. It was horrifying to see my dad handcuffed. But before getting in the police car, my father asked the cops to let him talk to us alone. He approached my brother and me and said he was sorry for stealing all these years. At first, it was a way to survive, but later, he kept stealing even though he could find a job. "See what happens to you if you keep stealing?" He told my brother. My brother was scared, so he promised never to steal again. My father told my brother to find a job because he was 18 and he asked him to take care of me. He promised that, when he got out of prison, he would find a job and that we would live our fair lives. I hid the truth, but I'm sure that sometimes you should let the elderly decide for you. Although it didn't seem like the right decision, my father couldn't let his son's life be because of him and his bad example. | |
