Family Portrait

The family portrait hangs alone in the formal dining room we never use anymore. There is a lamp on the credenza that mom use to turn on. A halo of soft light would cast the family in a cozy atmosphere – all happy and serene.

Mom is wearing a summer dress with a floppy blue scarf tied around her neck. My two brothers and I have on matching shirts. Dave is wearing the cross earring that mom told him to remove, but he stuck it back in just before the picture was taken. We all smiled except daddy. His lips are a tight straight line. He is wearing a blue shirt with a striped tie. The photographer had him rest his left hand on mom’s shoulder. His wedding ring gleams with one diamond.

I take my permanent ink black marker and draw devil horns on mom’s head. My heart is pounding, but I don’t stop there. I draw a star with a circle around it where her real heart should be. Dave said these symbols have something to do with witches and that is what mom is now.

Grandma has come to live with us and she says, “You’re just like your father.” She doesn’t say it in a nice way. Then she adds, “That’s why your mom kicked him out and he now lives with that hussy.” I’m not sure what a hussy is, but if daddy is with a hussy it must be something good.

I’ve put a mustache on daddy. It makes him look less sad, and I blacken out my brothers teeth, just for fun. I smile at my handiwork.

Mom will never notice. We never use the dining room anymore. Now I have to find a picture of grandma. I’ll use the bright red marker.

Word count: 299