The Prodigal Father

HEARING my father's car drive in, I ran upstairs behind my brothers and sisters to escape the drunken stupor I knew my father would be in. He drank so heavily that my brothers, sisters, and I were scared of him. Do you know what it's like to be terrified of your own father? It was like not having a father at all. I used to be ashamed to invite friends over after school or to have them spend the night, because I knew my father would come home yelling and upsetting everyone in our family. I did not want anyone to see him in that condition, because I hated him for drinking so much and making us all so afraid.