My Papa said, “She’s crazy; that’s why I have to go. You’re too young to understand, and I hope you never know the heartache that I’m feeling as I walk away. But don’t you worry. You’ll be fine. You’ll be a man someday.”

My Mama said, “He’s lazy, and he ain’t worth a dime. We’re better off without him. You’ll understand in time. I don’t know how we’ll make it. We’ll get by any way we can. But don’t you worry. You’ll be fine. Someday you’ll be a man.”

Papa left and Mama tried, at least until the day she died. Policeman said, “Damn heroin,” and took me to the next of kin. “You can’t stay here all by yourself. You’ll have to live with someone else. But don’t you worry. You’ll be fine. You’ll grow into a man in time.”

So now I’m here. I’m good and grown. Through all these years, I’ve never known. If Papa’s worthless and Mama’s crazy as she can be, it might sound hopeless. But what does that make me?