My Journal

A Family Mystery Uncovered

My grandfather sat at the table reading his Sunday paper while drinking coffee and eating breakfast. His mustache had white powder on it from the doughnut he had just finished, and red jelly had dripped on his shirt. I stared at him wondering if I should say anything to him. He must have noticed that I had been staring because he put the paper down and looked at me with curiosity written on his face. 

“Is there something bothering you, William?” He questioned me.

“You just have some powder and jelly on you,” I replied as I pointed with my finger to places the doughnut had left it marks of territory. Grandfather wiped himself clean then looked back at me, this time with a smile.

“You don’t have to stay in the house all day you know? You can go have fun outside, go meet new people, run a marathon, or whatever it is that you kids do these days.” 

This was my first summer away from home, and my mother never let me out of the house by myself in the big city. Grandfather lived on a farm in a small town. I didn’t know anyone here or what to do. I knew if my mother had been here she would object, restricting me to only maybe playing in the backyard within her site even though I am 12-years-old.

“Go,” Grandfather said with demand.

I got up from the breakfast table and ran outside in a hurry. The morning was a nice summer day with a slight breeze in the air. The air smelled of fresh-cut grass and apple pies sitting by windows of people’s homes. I walked down the road, which is where there was a small neighborhood of three houses, and a kid of my age mowing the lawn to his property. He stopped for a second to wave, then continued to mow the grass. 

I sat down on a nearby rock for a moment trying to figure out what I could do. I had no idea what kids did outside other than mow grass and grandfather’s goats had already taken care of that job. Maybe I could visit the barn animals, I thought to myself. I got up from the seat and walked back down the road to the barn. 

As I slipped through the barn door, the scent of animal dung and hay filled my nose. I walked down the barn going towards the end glancing at each animal as I came across them. The horses and cows were outside but the pigs and goats were inside as well as a mean old donkey who tried to kick me through his stall when I got too close. “Well, I know why they nicknamed your kind ‘ass’ now,” I shouted at him as I jumped back in fear. 

When I reached the end of the barn I noticed a secret doorway covered in wallpaper.  I looked around to ensure no one was watching me, then carefully peeled the paper away so that I could open the door. The door creaked as I opened it slowly, and I could feel the donkey’s eyes watching me as I entered through the door into the secret room. The room was filled with dust and old photographs from when my mom and her older sister were children. My grandparents looked so much younger and everyone was full of smiles. I had never met my aunt before because like my father she had died before I was born. I had heard that she was beautiful and loved spending her summers helping on the farm, but other than that no one liked talking about her. There was a blue notebook on a desk that sat in the room. I picked up the notebook and opened it and began reading it:

Dear Diary,

I found out I am pregnant today. I am so excited but also scared. Will I make a good mother? I hope that I do. At least I know I have a family that will help raise my child. My mom and dad are going to be so happy to hear that they will have a grandchild on the way. I will have to write to my husband and let him know that he will be a father. He was just sent to fight in the war on the island of Hawaii. I miss him so much.

Wish me luck,

Evie Wilson

Evie was my aunt’s name. The notebook that I found must be my aunt’s diary. If this first part of the notebook was correct then that means I must have a cousin somewhere. Why have I never heard of this cousin? I thought to myself. I flipped through a few pages to see if I could figure out what happened, but nothing else talked about the pregnancy until the very last page.

Dear Diary,

I had my son, William Yesterday. I am currently writing to you while in the hospital. I got sick shortly after giving birth to him and due to the loss of blood and my weakened immune system, the doctor says I will probably not make it home. I have not got to spend much time around my son due to being sick. So, William if you are reading this while you are older, I want you to know that I love you and will be watching over you.

Love,

Mom

Shock stunned me. I was told that my father passed during the war. I never knew why my family had done a swap, and that my aunt was my mom. Why had they never trusted me with this information before? 

“It’s about time that you know, who your real mom is,” Grandfather’s voice echoed.

“Why was this kept a secret?” I questioned him.

“You’re mom, or I should say your aunt wanted it to be that way until you were old enough to understand. That is why she sent you here this summer. She wanted you to learn the truth and have some time to think about it. If you have any questions you are welcomed to ask me or your grandmother.” his voice was sincere and he opened his arms, welcoming a hug.

I ran to my grandfather’s arms and let out a few tears before following him back to the house to learn things about both my mother and father and who they really were.