A/N - This chapter is bit 'boring' as it gives a background on who Jack's family is. Hope I don't lose you for the next chapters! :}
Sara reached over for the photo album. "What has your father told you about them?" she asked Sydney.
"Nothing. I didn't know any of you even existed, until today." Sydney answered remorsefully.
Sara opened the photo album and started to give Sydney a pictorial history of her family.
The first picture she saw was of Donahue Marcus Bristow. It was June, 1938. Donahue had just graduated from high school and the world was on the verge of another world war.
In December, 1939 he made two major changes in his life. He married his high school sweetheart, Rebecca Anne Taylor, and he joined the U.S. Army. He was married wearing his army uniform. His bride wore a simple chiffon dress. She carried white roses. They made a handsome couple.
Their first child, Sean Marcus Bristow, was born on September 1, 1940. He was a beautiful baby, who grew to be a handsome young man. Even in his earliest pictures he was always smiling or laughing.
By the time Pearl Harbor was bombed, in December, 1941, Don Bristow was a Master Sergeant and Rebecca Bristow had her first miscarriage.
In January, 1942 Don was sent overseas. His wife was never informed of his exact location. He was gone for two years. He returned home with a Silver Star and the Purple Heart.
He also returned home to a wife who had developed an obsessive attachment to her child. The women in Don's life told him not to be concerned, as she was only that way because he had been away for so long. They assured him that things would improve now that he was home and they would have more children.
Until this time the only family pictures Sydney had ever seen were a few pictures that she had of herself and her parents. This was the first time she had seen pictures of any of her relatives. Sydney noticed that there was no mistaking that her eyes did resemble her grandmother's. She liked the idea of that ancestral connection.
One of the things that Sydney couldn't help but notice is that something was happening to Rebecca. There was a haze of some sort that was clouding her face. It was as though she was pulling away from her family.
Sara explained to Sydney that Rebecca desperately wanted more children, but she had two additional miscarriages, after her husband returned from the war. After each miscarriage it took her months to recover from the loss, both physically and emotionally. The doctors suggested that she not have anymore children, but Rebecca was determined to have many children.
In August, 1949 she became pregnant again. This pregnancy was not easy for her. She was sick during most of it. The Bristows lived on an army base in Oklahoma and Rebecca hardly ever saw her husband. As a result, she decided to finish off her pregnancy at her grandmother's home, in Ontario, Canada. She promised her husband that she would return to the United States before the child was born.
During the start of her eighth month of pregnancy Rebecca mysteriously fell down a flight of stairs, causing her to go into early labor. Her second and last child, Jonathan Donahue Bristow, was born on March 16, 1950. Rebecca refused to leave Canada until her husband resigned from the Army.
He resigned in July, 1950 and moved back to his old neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland. He felt that his wife would be happier if she was close to family. He was trilled to find a house across the street from his sister and her husband.
The only job Don could find was a watchman for a local factory. Although he worked for the factory for over 30 years, he never liked the job.
On the surface Rebecca did appear to have regained some of her spark. Her devotion to Sean never stopped, but it was evident that she never had the same affection for her second child.
Sean was her pride and joy. Rebecca had dreams of Sean one day becoming a famous scientist. Unfortunately Sean had no interest in medicine. His goal was to please his father and become an officer in the United States Army.
He felt the best way to do this was to get an appointment to West Point Military Academy. With the help of his father, he succeeded. The fact that he reached his goal did not come as a surprise to anyone as Sean always accomplished what he set out to do.
Everyone was happy with Sean's appointment to West Point. Everyone one except his mother and brother.
There were few smiles in the pictures taken in August, 1958. These were the last pictures taken of Sean and his family, before he left for the Academy. Even Sean's smile was forced.
Although Sean was anxious to start his career, he also felt guilty about leaving his young brother behind. He knew that Johnny needed him, but the Academy was something that Sean needed to do. He assured his brother that there would be many semester breaks. He promised he would return home for all of them and that they would spend all his free time together. Johnny put on brave front and told Sean not to worry about him, that he would be fine.
In June, 1960, after having completed only two years at West Point, 2LT Sean M. Bristow volunteered to work with the special advisory forces that were stationed in Viet Nam. He was allowed a 30 day leave, before shipping out. He returned home for those 30 days. It was the most difficult 30 days of his life.
"I gave Sean a lot of credit for how he handled himself on that leave." Sara told Sydney. "His parents battled for his affection and his mother hovered over him every minute he was awake. Rebecca had a premonition that she would never see Sean again. No one paid any attention to her because,...." Sara looked up at Sydney and gave her a weak little smile, "...well, Rebecca was always having premonitions that something bad was going to happen. We just ignored her."
What Sydney noticed most, about this photo album, was that one member of the family always appeared to be standing off to the side. He rarely smiled, unless he was standing next to Sean. "My Dad was close to Sean, wasn't he?" Sydney commented.
"Your father worshipped Sean," Sara corrected her. "And Sean adored Johnny."
Sara gently ran her fingers over a picture of the two brothers and told Sydney, "Johnny was his only hesitation for leaving. On his last trip home, he asked me to watch out for him. Sean was concerned that he was becoming too withdrawn. He spent most of his time alone in his room, reading and studying. He told Sean that one day he would follow in his footsteps and go to West Point."
"Sean was proud that Johnny wanted to follow in his footsteps, but he also believed that hiding in his room was contributing to his feelings of loneliness and isolation. Sean knew that Johnny's way of dealing with unpleasantness was to simply not acknowledge it."
"That's something that hasn't changed over the years," Sydney thought to herself.
"There was quite a contrast in the two boys," Sydney pointed out. She asked her aunt, "Why was Sean so,...so vibrant and my dad so withdrawn?"
Sara still felt shame for her role in what happened at her brother's house. She wondered if she should tell Sydney anymore than what she has already said. Then she realized that Jack had been gone for quite awhile. She believed that he was staying away so that she could tell Sydney the things that he was never able to tell her himself.
Sara made the decision to go on with her stories, "Back in the fifties it was called one of those dirty-little-family-secrets that no one talked about, outside the family. We really didn't realize things were as bad as they were until it was too late. Unfortunately, your father paid the consequences of all that."
"What was the secret?" Sydney asked and then partially answered on her own, "Was he being abused?"
Sara knew that Sydney was a bright woman so she was not surprised by her question. "No, the abuse was a consequence of the secret."
Sydney also made another observation. Her original belief was that whatever emotional handicap her father suffered was at the hands of his father. She was now starting to realize that she suspected the wrong parent. "It wasn't his father, was it?" Sydney asked.
Sara shook her head to confirm that it was not Don. "No, it was Rebecca." she told her. "There were signs from before Johnny was born, but things were worse, after he was born. At the time we didn't know what it was, but today it would probably be called Manic Depression."
Carolyn could tell that her mother was having a difficult time trying to find the right way to continue with her recount of the family history. She suggested that they take a break and have some tea. While the tea was being brewed Sydney attempted to call her father on his cell phone, but he didn't answer. Jack always answered Sydney's calls. She was a little concerned that he wasn't answering, but she was not going to make an issue of it.
After serving the tea, Carolyn decided that it was time to start dinner. Sydney told her that wasn't necessary as their hotel was an hour drive and they should probably head for it as soon as her father returned.
Sara told her it foolish for them to drive so far away when she had plenty of room right here. Sydney liked the idea of spending the night with her new found family. She said she'd love to stay, but she wasn't sure how her father would react. Sara told her to not worry about that, she would take care of any protest that her father may have. Sydney smiled at Sara's confidence in her ability to control her father.
Carolyn started dinner while Sydney and Sara took the photo albums and went outside. They sat in the rockers, that were on Sara's front porch. Sara was ready to tell Sydney what she needed to know.
Sara reached over for the photo album. "What has your father told you about them?" she asked Sydney.
"Nothing. I didn't know any of you even existed, until today." Sydney answered remorsefully.
Sara opened the photo album and started to give Sydney a pictorial history of her family.
The first picture she saw was of Donahue Marcus Bristow. It was June, 1938. Donahue had just graduated from high school and the world was on the verge of another world war.
In December, 1939 he made two major changes in his life. He married his high school sweetheart, Rebecca Anne Taylor, and he joined the U.S. Army. He was married wearing his army uniform. His bride wore a simple chiffon dress. She carried white roses. They made a handsome couple.
Their first child, Sean Marcus Bristow, was born on September 1, 1940. He was a beautiful baby, who grew to be a handsome young man. Even in his earliest pictures he was always smiling or laughing.
By the time Pearl Harbor was bombed, in December, 1941, Don Bristow was a Master Sergeant and Rebecca Bristow had her first miscarriage.
In January, 1942 Don was sent overseas. His wife was never informed of his exact location. He was gone for two years. He returned home with a Silver Star and the Purple Heart.
He also returned home to a wife who had developed an obsessive attachment to her child. The women in Don's life told him not to be concerned, as she was only that way because he had been away for so long. They assured him that things would improve now that he was home and they would have more children.
Until this time the only family pictures Sydney had ever seen were a few pictures that she had of herself and her parents. This was the first time she had seen pictures of any of her relatives. Sydney noticed that there was no mistaking that her eyes did resemble her grandmother's. She liked the idea of that ancestral connection.
One of the things that Sydney couldn't help but notice is that something was happening to Rebecca. There was a haze of some sort that was clouding her face. It was as though she was pulling away from her family.
Sara explained to Sydney that Rebecca desperately wanted more children, but she had two additional miscarriages, after her husband returned from the war. After each miscarriage it took her months to recover from the loss, both physically and emotionally. The doctors suggested that she not have anymore children, but Rebecca was determined to have many children.
In August, 1949 she became pregnant again. This pregnancy was not easy for her. She was sick during most of it. The Bristows lived on an army base in Oklahoma and Rebecca hardly ever saw her husband. As a result, she decided to finish off her pregnancy at her grandmother's home, in Ontario, Canada. She promised her husband that she would return to the United States before the child was born.
During the start of her eighth month of pregnancy Rebecca mysteriously fell down a flight of stairs, causing her to go into early labor. Her second and last child, Jonathan Donahue Bristow, was born on March 16, 1950. Rebecca refused to leave Canada until her husband resigned from the Army.
He resigned in July, 1950 and moved back to his old neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland. He felt that his wife would be happier if she was close to family. He was trilled to find a house across the street from his sister and her husband.
The only job Don could find was a watchman for a local factory. Although he worked for the factory for over 30 years, he never liked the job.
On the surface Rebecca did appear to have regained some of her spark. Her devotion to Sean never stopped, but it was evident that she never had the same affection for her second child.
Sean was her pride and joy. Rebecca had dreams of Sean one day becoming a famous scientist. Unfortunately Sean had no interest in medicine. His goal was to please his father and become an officer in the United States Army.
He felt the best way to do this was to get an appointment to West Point Military Academy. With the help of his father, he succeeded. The fact that he reached his goal did not come as a surprise to anyone as Sean always accomplished what he set out to do.
Everyone was happy with Sean's appointment to West Point. Everyone one except his mother and brother.
There were few smiles in the pictures taken in August, 1958. These were the last pictures taken of Sean and his family, before he left for the Academy. Even Sean's smile was forced.
Although Sean was anxious to start his career, he also felt guilty about leaving his young brother behind. He knew that Johnny needed him, but the Academy was something that Sean needed to do. He assured his brother that there would be many semester breaks. He promised he would return home for all of them and that they would spend all his free time together. Johnny put on brave front and told Sean not to worry about him, that he would be fine.
In June, 1960, after having completed only two years at West Point, 2LT Sean M. Bristow volunteered to work with the special advisory forces that were stationed in Viet Nam. He was allowed a 30 day leave, before shipping out. He returned home for those 30 days. It was the most difficult 30 days of his life.
"I gave Sean a lot of credit for how he handled himself on that leave." Sara told Sydney. "His parents battled for his affection and his mother hovered over him every minute he was awake. Rebecca had a premonition that she would never see Sean again. No one paid any attention to her because,...." Sara looked up at Sydney and gave her a weak little smile, "...well, Rebecca was always having premonitions that something bad was going to happen. We just ignored her."
What Sydney noticed most, about this photo album, was that one member of the family always appeared to be standing off to the side. He rarely smiled, unless he was standing next to Sean. "My Dad was close to Sean, wasn't he?" Sydney commented.
"Your father worshipped Sean," Sara corrected her. "And Sean adored Johnny."
Sara gently ran her fingers over a picture of the two brothers and told Sydney, "Johnny was his only hesitation for leaving. On his last trip home, he asked me to watch out for him. Sean was concerned that he was becoming too withdrawn. He spent most of his time alone in his room, reading and studying. He told Sean that one day he would follow in his footsteps and go to West Point."
"Sean was proud that Johnny wanted to follow in his footsteps, but he also believed that hiding in his room was contributing to his feelings of loneliness and isolation. Sean knew that Johnny's way of dealing with unpleasantness was to simply not acknowledge it."
"That's something that hasn't changed over the years," Sydney thought to herself.
"There was quite a contrast in the two boys," Sydney pointed out. She asked her aunt, "Why was Sean so,...so vibrant and my dad so withdrawn?"
Sara still felt shame for her role in what happened at her brother's house. She wondered if she should tell Sydney anymore than what she has already said. Then she realized that Jack had been gone for quite awhile. She believed that he was staying away so that she could tell Sydney the things that he was never able to tell her himself.
Sara made the decision to go on with her stories, "Back in the fifties it was called one of those dirty-little-family-secrets that no one talked about, outside the family. We really didn't realize things were as bad as they were until it was too late. Unfortunately, your father paid the consequences of all that."
"What was the secret?" Sydney asked and then partially answered on her own, "Was he being abused?"
Sara knew that Sydney was a bright woman so she was not surprised by her question. "No, the abuse was a consequence of the secret."
Sydney also made another observation. Her original belief was that whatever emotional handicap her father suffered was at the hands of his father. She was now starting to realize that she suspected the wrong parent. "It wasn't his father, was it?" Sydney asked.
Sara shook her head to confirm that it was not Don. "No, it was Rebecca." she told her. "There were signs from before Johnny was born, but things were worse, after he was born. At the time we didn't know what it was, but today it would probably be called Manic Depression."
Carolyn could tell that her mother was having a difficult time trying to find the right way to continue with her recount of the family history. She suggested that they take a break and have some tea. While the tea was being brewed Sydney attempted to call her father on his cell phone, but he didn't answer. Jack always answered Sydney's calls. She was a little concerned that he wasn't answering, but she was not going to make an issue of it.
After serving the tea, Carolyn decided that it was time to start dinner. Sydney told her that wasn't necessary as their hotel was an hour drive and they should probably head for it as soon as her father returned.
Sara told her it foolish for them to drive so far away when she had plenty of room right here. Sydney liked the idea of spending the night with her new found family. She said she'd love to stay, but she wasn't sure how her father would react. Sara told her to not worry about that, she would take care of any protest that her father may have. Sydney smiled at Sara's confidence in her ability to control her father.
Carolyn started dinner while Sydney and Sara took the photo albums and went outside. They sat in the rockers, that were on Sara's front porch. Sara was ready to tell Sydney what she needed to know.