A Short Story: The Truth

Part Two

      "Welcome, friends and family of Charles Armstrong. You've all gathered here today to celebrate his life and to mourn the death of a wonderful man like Charles."

     I couldn't stop myself from thinking in my head how bogus it all was. I did my best to lose myself and not listen to the words that the man spoke too closely, and when we were asked to stand sing our father's favorite hymn, me and my sisters all stayed seated. After the song, and a few others, the man invited the first speaker to share words about the deceased. He introduced her as Frog, a woman with a brutal nickname that I had known of my entire life, though I had only seen her a few times. She clumsily made her way behind the podium, stumbling the entire way. When she finally planted herself and stopped wobbling, she began to speak in her classic, hoarse voice that resembled the croak of a frog.

     "Charles, well where do I even begin? He was a man who was always there for everyone. He never let his friends go without something- ya know he was very giving."

     Frog's words were slurred, and taking that and her gawkiness into account, I assumed she was drunk; a classic friend of my father's.

     "Charles was my friend since high school- ya know we were life long pals. I just can't believe that he's gone."

     She paused, and took a deep breath. It was then that her tears began to fall, and I felt for her. She was victimized by my father's manipulation and truly believed that she had lost a good friend. My head was in a whirl; a mixture of pure pity for Frog and rage for the lies she was telling the audience who didn't know any better than she did. Through her escalating cries turning into wails, the man with the suit, whom I learned was named Jeffery, escorted her back to her seat. The room was filled with a thick silence, one that took the people sitting in the pews captive and wrapped around their throats. I was falling to it just as much as anyone, and I guess the blank stare on my face proved that to my sisters. My eldest looked to me and grabbed my hand, going along with the classic silence but providing immense comfort that was much needed to quiet the screaming in my head. Jeffery soon made his way back up to the podium, calling for the next speaker: Rachel, our old babysitter. She walked solemnly to the front of the room, much more collected than Frog had been just minutes before.

     "Charles was my employer for years; I babysat his three beautiful children. He was a wonderful man, one who always did the right thing. He didn't have it easy when he was growing up, and we talked about his situation many times. But even so, he was an amazing father. He always provided for his kids; he did everything he could for them. He wasn't always appreciated, and despite that, he continued to be the best that he could be for everyone around him."