GREAT READS → SHOOTING STARS Issue 789 · December 11, 2019

Shooting Stars: Chapter 4

Uncle Dani, my dear Uncle Dani, is nowhere to be found. In his stead is a hardened confused, guy

Shooting Stars: Chapter 4

I thought I had seen it all. That I had stared pain in the face. Or so I thought. How much more than mommy’s cancer could I handle? I was grossly mistaken.

It just evolved, without warning. The process was swift, at least superficially. It hasn’t been long… and now I barely recognize him. His gelled hair, jeans, empty eyes. Dani — a shadow of his former self.

He staggers in every night — or more like in the wee hours of the morning. Savta’s face is pinched. Sabba’s hair is snow white. There are shouts. There are battles. But never victory. Uncle Dani, my dear Uncle Dani, is nowhere to be found. In his stead is a hardened confused, guy. Why exactly, I still don’t know.

Visits to Saba and Savta are hard. No one wants to witness the next argument. The words that emerge from Uncle Dani’s mouth are angry. And Savta can do nothing but shrug. He accuses. He blames. And how I wish I could tell him that there is only one person to blame — himself.

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