>>5542546>1 AP: Confide my harrowing experience to my fatherInhaling deeply, you ask your father to take a seat, resolved to at least attempt to explain what you just experience – what you continue to experience.
He must have caught on to something in your expression because he doesn’t question you.
Hoisting himself up onto the tabletop next to you, he gestures for you to continue – a delicate motion, like coaxing a dove.
You explain everything, exhaustively - the bizarre shape in the sky, the paralysis, the intense pain, the onset of obsessive fixation, your vehement rejection of those urges, the esoteric data that was and still is rattling around in your head.
For his part, your father doesn’t interrupt though his brow does slowly knot in furrows over the course of your explanation.
When you finally run out of breath, a pregnant pause hangs in the air.
Your father is watching you closely, is that incredulity in his eyes, deepening concern for your health, maybe a hint of disappointment?
= Def: ‘Can we blame him for being skeptical? If we were in his position we’d probably be thinking along the same lines.’ =
= Dep: ‘Dad trusts us, that’s beyond doubt. He may not understand what we are saying, but he’ll believe that we experienced what he said we experience’ =
= Def: ‘Just because someone experiences something doesn’t mean it’s a credible account of reality. For example, schizophrenics experience all sorts of things but that doesn’t mean any of it actually happened.’ =
= Dep: That’s awful! Dad DOES NOT think we’re crazy. We’re not crazy! I’d know about it!’ =
= Def: ‘Would you?’
= Sub: ‘Damn, our throat is parched. Where’d that water go?’ =
At some point during that episode of self-reflection, you father had gotten to his feet.
Recapturing your attention by gently brushing your hair into place, he softly says.
“If that’s what happened, then that’s what happened.”
Picking up the now-no-longer-chilled cup of water, he continues.
“Have some water, it’ll help. Afterwards, we can figure out what exactly is going on and what to do about it.”
