A very brave boy!

This is a Golf Park story. You might remember that in a previous story I said it was in Golf Park that I began to realize that there was trouble in paradise.
I remember this time so well because it was my birthday. I am not sure if I was turning 5 or 6 but for sure it was my birthday,
Mom had baked me a cake. This was the first time I remember celebrating a birthday. That doesn't mean I never had a party, I just don't remember it.
So, it's my birthday, and I'm all excited even though I don't know why. Mom and the boys said "hurray, it's your birthday!"I figured if they were glad then that meant it was a good thing. I had this cake, and something wonderful was suppose to happen. I kept asking mom when this birthday thing was going to take place. She said,"when your daddy gets home."
The man was late! Over and over I begged her to have the party. She said "no, we'll wait till daddy gets home." Well, daddy came home...boy did he come home.
He was as drunk as a skunk.Mom never could keep her mouth shut (now we know where Jerry got it from),and she flew into him like nobody's business. You, need to know that my father was 6'3" and my mother was 5'3". You would have thought that his height alone would have been enough to intimidate her, but nooooo, not my mother. There she was,RIGHT UP IN HIS FACE, and then it began.
Whenever my father drank he wanted to fight. Ususally he came out of it at the wrong end of the stick because although he was very tall he was also very thin. Looking back I believe daddy was an unhealthy person even then. He drank a lot, and smoked a lot, and probably didn't eat very well either. Alcoholics are known for refusing to eat when they start drinking and he drank often. Mom said he was drinking pretty good as a teenager. Anyway, he was in a fighting mood when he came home that evening.
The thing that stands out to me the most is not that daddy was drunk or that mom was yelling and screaming at him. I must have been use to this even though I can't recall it ever happening before. What stood out to me was I was afraid of my father for the first time that I could remember. His behavior was strange to me. He hit my mother,and knocked her out cold. Now, this is the really outstanding part. When mom fell to the floor my brother Larry knelt down beside her to see if she was OK. She didn't respond and we all thought she was dead. Larry, who was 9 or 10 yrs old, grabbed a broom and went after my father screaming," you have killed our mother!" Daddy took the broom away from him, and broke it over his knee. I do not remember what happened next. I do have a vague memory of a neighbor coming over, but it is fussy. Now, can you image a young boy taking on his father like that? He was a very brave boy who was ready to defend his family.It was something that was just natural to him. He acted immediately without any thought of what our father might do or if he would be hurt. It wasn't too long after that that we (my brothers and I)found ourselves without mother or father. I don remember why but we were alone. Larry decided that we needed help as we were children and no one was taking care of us. So, he,and Jerry, lead me and Bobby to our aunt and uncle's apartment. We had to leave Rusty behind in the crib. This exodus from our house to the promise land of Aunt Carolyn's was a fair walk indeed! What I remember was not the long walk but the wonderful smell of pine. I felt complete confidence in Larry's ability to get us where we needed to go. Not once was I afraid or concerned. The boys always protected me. I just remember the wonderful pungent aroma of pine trees.I kind of recall arriving at Aunt Carolyn's apartment but nothing after that. Larry had completed his job....get himself and the younger children to a safer place. I am sure Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Charlie called our grandmother, and went over to our house and to pick up Rusty.
These two events sound so sad, and they were, but when I think back on that time I am so grateful for my brother Larry and his courage. He was the oldest child and took on an adult responsibility. He always seemed so serious to me and compared to Jerry he was. But he carried an inner burden that often occures in a dysfunctional family. As the oldest we all looked to him for help and instead of turning away he stepped up to the plate. Thank you dear brother Larry