The Unmasking

I never saw that side of him before - he was this person I didn’t know, not that I ever did anyway. He was reserved as usual, staring at nothing to the side of the dining room table smiling quietly to himself as he sat in the chair, almost as if enjoying the conversation around him. And the thing is that I can’t say if he was or not cos’ I honestly don’t know him that well.

Eventually he got up and hugged his sister goodbye for what I knew would be the last time and the gesture made her break down and cry. “All right, all right” he said softly to her, his arm around her back – he always was uncomfortable with any show of emotion like that and he managed to make her tears stop if only briefly by pointing to the camera. A shy person generally hates pictures but not on this occasion, not tonight. He was the perfect sibling just then and he knew it as they both stood up straight for me to snap the photo.

What I didn’t get is why could he not even try to do likewise in marriage and fatherhood. Even once maybe? Or is it too late for that? The truth is that there are many truths – to a person, to a situation, to any and everything and on that occasion I witnessed one of his, that he’s a different personality to everyone else. And although we have accepted that here at home, sometimes, just sometimes I still can’t help but wonder just why that is.