Brian

Elisabeth met Brian at work when he began coming by the house. He seemed like a nice enough kid. It was difficult to get to know him because he usually didn’t arrive until after 10 o'clock at night. I know teenagers often keep late schedules but I became increasingly annoyed that he came over so late. Elisabeth was 18 and she had graduated from high school, so I chose not to say anything.

We didn't see Brian for a while. He took a job at a ski resort for the winter. Occasionally Elisabeth would mention his name, but nothing significant. Sometime in May Brian came over again. He had moved back. I asked her what he was doing now. Would he be going to go to school in the fall? Did he have a job? Elisabeth wasn't sure. His late night visits began again. I found myself getting irritated that he rarely came over during the day, just at night.

One night as I headed to bed, I stopped to preset the coffee and layout the lunches for the next morning. Brian had just arrived and he was sitting at the kitchen table with Elisabeth. I overheard their conversation.

"Your eyes are red. Have you been crying?" She asked.

"It is just wrong that a kid has to put his father to bed every night." Brian put his hand to his face and rubbed his eyes to keep the tears from falling.

Brian's dad has Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS. Brian's mom and dad are divorced and much of his father's care falls to Brian. His dad is wheelchair bound and requires help getting into bed. Brian isn't free to leave his home until his father is safely tucked in at night.

Yes, it does seem wrong for a kid, or teenager to have to put his father in bed at night. Not every teen that stays up late does so by choice.