Two Sides of the Same Coin

Father

I closed my eyes and looked back on how my father used to be. Always happy, always smiling. I remember when my mother had to go to New York for one of her movie premiers and I had to stay home with my dad. She was going to be gone for a week and my dad had nothing planned to do with me since it was the first time he's been alone with me.

"So, Missy, you want to see a movie?" He asked me. It was a sunny afternoon in California. The windows were wide open and the breeze swept through the house.

"Yeah, what movie? The Muppets from Space? Tarzan? Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost? It's an old movies day at the Marcus Movie Theater." I said while I was coloring in a coloring book. A big breeze came through the house and I struggled to hold onto the papers from flying everywhere with my little, stubby hands.

"I was thinking about the Jaws marathon they have going on there. Wait, how old are you?" My father asked.

"Six." I replied dangling my legs off of the white, wooden chair.

"Okay, Tarzan it is." He said.

We went to the movies, my father got the tickets and we were waiting in line for concessions.

"So, what do you like to drink? Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew?" He asked as the line moved up. We were both holding hands.

"I don't know what those are." I replied looking up to him.

"How about you try some Coke?" He offered looking down and smiling at me.

I shrugged and nodded my head. "Okay. Would mommy get mad?"

There was a few moments of silence and then he chuckled. "This would be our little secret."

I giggled and nodded my head.

My father got one of those jumbo buckets of popcorn so we wouldn't run out during the previews. Then he bought me a large cup of Coke, which became my new favorite drink.

I opened my eyes and I felt a few tears trickle down my cheek. "Boy do I miss those father-daughter dates."