Holly Puts Me In My Place

One story that I have enjoyed telling others involves my daughter, Holly, when she was age 14 in 2000. At that time, my son, Johnathan, was in Navy school just after he finished Boot Camp in Great Lakes, Ill. I had not attended church during the previous 7 years and, as far as I knew, neither had my ex-wife, Holly's mother. As I was driving down Palmyra Road here in Hannibal in early February, 2000, with little Holly riding in the front seat on the passenger side, I told Holly that with Johnathan coming back home to Hannibal over President's Day weekend, I wanted to take both of them out to eat one night while he was here and I asked Holly to choose the date. Holly told me that February 22nd would be good, but she couldn't stay too long because she had a "church thing" to go to for young people that same evening.

I asked her, "What are you going to a church thing for?"

Holly replied, "I've been going to church."

I continued, "Who's been taking you?"

Holly replied, "Mom."

I asked, "How long's this been going on?"

Holly replied, "About two months."

As we drove down this street, I reflected on this new news for me and I told Holly, "Well, I think that it's good that your mother is going back to church so she can get right with God."

Holly, in a slightly disgusted tone of voice, told me, "You're a fine one to talk."

I turned towards Holly and I exclaimed, "DO YOU REALIZE....WHO....YOU'RE....TALKING TO?!!"

Still looking forward, Holly coolly replied, "A loser."

I laughed so hard.....and Holly knows she can get away with talking to me like that as she knows that it will make me laugh. I once asked Holly, "Do you ever talk to your mother like that?"

Holly quickly told me, "Oh, no, Mom would kill me."