Oliver and his Dad

I sitting on the subway recently and a man and his sons boarded. The son was maybe 8 years old and his father told him to take a seat in the empty one next to me. As he did, I exchanged glances with the man and smiled at him, giving my approval for the son to sit there. At first was put off by the man. He seemed stern. He must’ve had a long day at work. As the train sped off through the dark tunnels he started talking to his son. The boy was thirsty, but he was going to get water soon, the man told him. Then they began to joke. The dad told the boy that he was going to give his son a glass of sand. The boy thought that was funny. He turned around and said that he had eaten grass before. There conversation continued until they reached their stop. “Ver this is our stop,” he said, “Oliver this is our stop.” “I heard you,” Oliver responded. Then they got up and left the train, but not before the dad had a chance to mouth thank you to me.

I’ve though a lot about these two characters from the train, especially the boy. What are there stories?

It was about 6:00 when I ran into them. The dad had just finished work and picked-up his son Oliver from care-after-school. Since the mother is no longer in this story, Oliver’s dad has to work extra hard. His wife died a year ago leaving her husband alone with his son. Because of this, Oliver is very close to his father. Oliver is an only child, so he spends a lot of time with his dad. They are best friends. Oliver is a responsible kid and he respects his dad. This family of two lives in the city, so Oliver has never experienced neighbor kid-play. But that’s okay. He enjoys his friends at school, but usually doesn’t see them away from school. He likes it that way…he’s an introvert. He would rather we hanging out with his dad, and their dog Roger. Oliver likes to go to park and run around. The fall is the best, because you can jump in the leaves. Sometimes Roger even jumps in the leaves with him. Oliver also enjoys getting ice cream at the little shop down the street. This only happens on special occasions. He loves it there, because the lady behind the counter always knows what he wants. Sometimes his dad is busy though, and Oliver seeks entertainment in his small, but friendly room. He builds forts, works of crafts, and writes. Oliver and his dad are happy people. Through the sadness of the mother’s death they have found joy in each other and are living a good life.