Everyone knows how terrible life can be when one is forced to grow up in an environment free of abuse, stuffed to the gills with love and based on the idea that Jesus is a good role-model. It made sense to say that the need to rebel made it difficult to get along -- not just with people of a certain group, but with anyone. It had always been the case for Jonas Merner, though when he was younger, his parents were willing to accept the occasional tantrum, for it could be blamed on
childhood fussiness. Their flexibility wasn't endless, however, because Jonas always had one or two things to be unhappy about within the span of any given day. On Sundays, for example, the family enjoyed attending an early morning mass. There was nothing wrong with bringing their son along -- in fact, they figured it might have done him some good to be in the particular environment at an early age. But Jonas absolutely
loathed the place. He couldn't sit still, saw no sense in the words the man at the front of the room was always saying -- the idea that one person had the right to talk (save the awkward, distant chanting throughout the mass) felt unfair to the young boy. As he grew older, he learned to accept the fact that his parents simply wouldn't allow him to stay home from church -- it was not acceptable in their eyes.
When Jonas turned seven, he was told that he was going to have a baby sister to look after. At first, he wasn't sure how to react to the news.
Was it good news? Did it mean that he wouldn't have to go to church with his parents anymore? Would he finally be able to play outside with the other boys while they admired their little girl's Sunday dress?
Probably not. He decided he didn't like the thought of his parents doing this
little sister thing behind his back, however
that worked. Besides, everyone -- especially seven year-old boys -- knew girls were
gross!
Once his sister was born, he couldn't help but be curious about her. She was small, occasionally cute, but mostly vulnerable and in need of his mother's care. It left him feeling jealous, but not at all wanting to be near the happy little group. (As his parents recall, Jonas spent the majority of Bethany's baptism in the basement of the church!) One day, much to his displeasure, it seemed that the living arrangements had yet again been changed around. However, his parents had failed to notify him of the particular adjustment. Jonas stood in the doorway of his bedroom, staring furiously at the corner which he had previously used for playing in (occasionally time-outs as well). Standing up in a crib, which didn't belong in his room to begin with, was a happy little girl, waving at her older brother in an attempt to catch his attention. The boy couldn't complain (he wouldn't do that, he loved his little sister, despite the angry attitude he displayed). It wasn't Bethany's fault that their mother and father didn't want her staying in their room anymore. So without saying a single word, the young boy lifted the baby out of her crib and sat on the floor with her.
By the time Jonas turned nine, Bethany on the verge of turning two, his parents announced that they would be leaving their home in Florida. They were moving, while not
too far away from their current home, to somewhere he'd never even heard of! Jonas couldn't understand why they'd be running from such familiarity and comfort -- they had a tree-house in the backyard, there were lizards (sometimes even stray kittens), and great plants to play hide-and-seek in!
If they moved, he told his parents,
they'd be strangers! No one would know them, and they wouldn't know anyone else, either. Of course, this meant that there was always a chance to start anew...
"The pizza delivery guys won't even know where we live!" Perhaps they'd give up on going to church -- maybe they'd forget about forcing him through Sunday-school to make his
First Communion, maybe Bethany would be saved from the same horrors he'd braved.
It didn't turn out that way, though. The Merner family found a cheerful looking home in Grapevine, Texas and enrolled Jonas in a nearby elementary school without any form of hesitation; Bethany went to preschool after much careful discussion, none of which included Jonas. The boy didn't take well to being the
"new kid," and despite the few friends he managed to make, he tended to drift towards the shady crowd. He took his irritation out on other children, but always ducked out at the last minute so as to avoid being caught and punished. In his parents' eyes, he always had been a little angel. As he grew older, he became more of a Saint for them to unknowingly admire. When he'd sneak into the house after the curfew they set for him, they'd lovingly question him the next morning at 7:00AM. It never failed to amuse him when they smiled and nodded at his excuses, claiming to have faith in the good he was doing for his friends.
Why on earth would he be out after two in the morning helping someone with the science project they'd never been assigned?The game never seemed to stop; he'd do everything he pleased -- everything he knew his parents would disapprove of -- because the story could be altered, no matter how ridiculous, into a believable, legitimate situation. He was perfect in his parents' world, and he intended on letting them believe it, even as a senior in high school, Jonas was one to always recognize the more pessimistic (
"open your eyes!") aspects of life, but this was just a deal too good to be true for the 18 year-old.
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