I love you, Tom

My “little” brother and “baby” of the family went home to God on February 5, 2001.  Please pray for him and his family.

There was a five-year gap between me and my older brothers, but only a 2 ½-year gap between Tom and me, so we had a different, slightly closer bond with each other like our three older brothers had.  As small children, we had to share a bedroom.  This meant we had to share a lot of other “things” was well, like our books and toys, etc.  Sometimes one or the other of us would say or do something to the other that would cause Mom to send us to our room to wait for our Dad to “punish” us.  (The wait was usually punishment enough).  One particular time though, we were absolutely convinced we were going to be spanked when Dad got home, and Tom was inconsolable.  He eventually fell asleep sobbing, and I felt really bad for him.  I think I must have been about 6 or 7 years old and Tom about 4 or 5.  Tom wasn’t sleeping well and was tossing and turning in anxiety over Dad’s return from work.  There was about 2 feet between our beds, so I reached over and squeezed Tom’s hand to reassure him he would be OK.  He fell back asleep with my hand in his.  Just then, Dad got home, and I could hear him speak to Mom, then head toward our bedroom.  I was no dummy.  I knew he wouldn’t wake us up to punish us, so I pretended to be asleep, as well.  But I forgot to let go of Tom’s hand!  Dad opened the door and turned on the light, saw us holding hands while “asleep”, turned off the light, shut the door and started laughing.  He called my Mom to peek in on us.  When she saw us holding hands, she said “Isn’t that sweet?  They must have made up!  Let them sleep.”
She came over to separate our hands and tuck us in properly.  Tom was sound asleep, because he didn’t rouse a bit while she placed him under his covers.  I “pretended” to awaken when Dad picked me up so she could place my covers over me.  I didn’t fool either one of them, as Mom smiled at me and winked at Dad as if to say, “Well, you got out of this one!”  I hadn’t planned on that outcome, as I simply was trying to console Tom, but what the hell, whatever works, works!