Jason & Tommy didn't have
a typical
relationship as
brothers.
Jason was 14 and Tommy was 10.
Jason
wasn't
just Tommy's older brother, though;
he was his
best friend
in the whole world.
While most older brothers
wanted
nothing to do with their younger brothers,
Jason
would
always try to invite Tommy
to participate in his
activities.
Tommy loved his big brother.
They were true pals.
Besides his brother Jason,
Tommy didn't have many
friends.
Tommy often wondered
what he would do
without his older brother.
You see,
Little Tommy
had
been born with
a cardiopulmonary disease.
This had
stunted Tommy's growth
and had robbed him of his
youthful energy.
It wasn't that he didn't want to
play
baseball, tag and all the games
that other boys
his age
played,
it's just that
he got tired real quick
when he did.
Knowing this,
the other boys
never wanted Tommy to
be on their team.
They would fight over whose team
Tommy would have to be on,
and he was often
labeled
as a wimp or sissy
by the healthier boys.
But things were different
around his older brother
Jason.
Sometimes Tommy and Jason
would play their
own game of baseball.
Jason was a good athlete and
everyone wanted Jason on their team.
However Jason
would only consent to play
if they would also let
Tommy
be on his team.
If the other boys said no
then
Jason and Tommy
would both leave
and do something together.
School had just ended
and it was summer now.
Curt,
Nathan and Ron
wanted to go on an overnighter
in
the
mountains.
Naturally,
they wanted Jason to come
along
also.
"Let's go ask him if he can go
tomorrow,"
Ron spoke
up.
Curt was quick to respond.
"What if he
wants Tommy
to tag along?
It will slow us all down,
and we
don't want to
spend the whole time
hiking to the campsite."
Nathan was the first
to speak to Jason at his
house.
"Hey, Jason,
the three of us
are going on an
overnighter
up in Adam's Canyon.
Are you with us?"
"Sure I am!"
Jason was excited.
"I'll have Tommy's pack
and my own ready to go tonight,"
he said.
The three boys looked at each other,
wondering who
would tell Jason
that Tommy wasn't welcome to
come.
Finally Curt spoke up.
"Hey, ah, Jason...
this hike is just
for the four of us.
Tommy would slow us all down.
Nothing against Tommy,
but why don't you leave him
home this time?"
Jason saw Tommy through the corner of his eye.
Tommy
was standing by his bedroom door,
listening
intently to
the whole conversation.
He was bravely trying to
hold
back the tears of rejection.
Jason stood up and said,
"I'm sorry, guys,
but if Tommy
isn't welcome,
then I'm not going either.
You guys
have
fun.
"Hey, wait a minute," said
Ron.
"It's okay with me if
Tommy comes.
We can leave a little bit earlier to
give us
more time."
The guys agreed on a departing
time for the
next morning, and left.
Six o'clock came early the next morning.
Tommy was
ready by 5:30 a.m.
This was to be his first real
hike.
Within the first quarter mile,
it was obvious that
Tommy's
progress would be slow.
He wanted so much to
please
Jason by walking fast,
but the faster he walked,
the sooner
he would have to rest.
The other boys were anxious
to get
to the campsite,
and
often found themselves
leaving Jason
and Tommy behind.
"Here, Tommy, my pack is light.
Let me carry
yours, too,"
Jason said,
with concern for his brother.
Embarrassed,
Tommy gave Jason his heavy burden.
"I'm
sorry," said
Tommy.
"I'm doing the best I can."
"I know, Tommy,"
Jason said as he
rustled Tommy's hair.
After two miles
Tommy was struggling with fatigue.
He
was sweating profusely and fighting for air.
His
chest felt
tight, too.
I'll go a long way
before I stop
to rest this time,
thought Tommy.
The other boys were out of sight
now.
After five more minutes of walking,
Tommy fell to
his
knees.
"I gotta stop," whimpered Tommy,
with tears of
frustration
cutting clear streams through the
dust
on his
face.
"That's okay," said Jason.
"Take all the time you need."
Jason was obviously worried
as he saw Tommy
struggling
for breath.
"Jason, something is happening
inside my chest!
It hurts awful bad.
" Tommy was slumping over
on the
ground in pain.
Jason slipped the packs off his
back and
rolled Tommy over.
Tommy's tense body relaxed
suddenly
as he looked up into Jason's eyes
that had tears
now, too.
"I love you an awful lot, Jason."
The
struggle was over now.
Tommy's little body had given up.
The tears came
freely
from Jason's eyes he tightly hugged his
brother.
"I'll miss you, Tommy,"
Jason softly
whispered.
Forty-five minutes later,
tears were still
trickling from
Jason's eyes when the other boys returned.
"Hey,
Jason, we thought you guys got--
Ron stopped short
in
the middle of his comment.
A chill ran down the
boy's backs.
Jason was supporting Tommy's silent head in his
lap,
caressing the tear-stained face of his little
brother.
"Is he...is he dead, Jason?"
Ron asked
tenderly.
"Yeah," Jason said, as another tear fell
quietly from
his eyes to Tommy's face.
"He was doing his
very best
for me."
Two more minutes passed in silence.
"I'll carry him down now,"
Jason said,
as he gently
lifted the lifeless body
in the cradle of his
arms.
Nothing was said for 20 minutes
down the mountain
trail.
Finally,
Curt tapped Jason on his shoulder,
"I'll
spell ya and carry Tommy for a while.
You must be
getting tired now."
