134
“You know why that is? People that have dealt with you know that you have a problem and you need help. However, there‘s going to be no counseling for you or anything like that. You‘re not going to undergo treatment and spend several months somewhere away from home hoping that your anger will subside and you‘ll be a,” he made the quote marks with his fingers, “normal person. David, things are going to change, and they‘re going to change today. I‘m not going to tell you what‘s going to happen. You‘ll see it for yourself. I will tell you one thing, though, Carlos does get angry when someone does him wrong, just like you and I do. The difference is that he doesn‘t show it in a violent way. He does not resort to violence to solve the problem. That‘s why he‘s never hurt anyone.”
“Can you or Carlos tell me the secret to that?”
“We won‘t just tell you. We‘ll show you. You‘ll have to wait though until Pablo and Jose get here.”
“I got it. I just can‘t wait. I need to do something to turn my life around now.”
“You will, and we will help you, just not yet. It‘s not the time. The Milian brothers are going to get here, and when they do, we will kill three birds with one bullet.”
Smiling, David said, “That‘s a saying we have in Spanish, ‗killing two birds with one bullet‘. I like that.”
Lorena brought the snacks to the living room and placed them on the coffee table. Each person would get one fruit in a bowl as a snack, peeled, cut into pieces and ready to enjoy, along with a glass of one-percent low fat milk. “I know what the favorite fruit is for each of us, so you guys take your fruit and enjoy.” Lorena sat on the sofa right next to David, picked up her bowl of fruit, poked one piece with the fork and started eating it.
“So this is inherited, right?” David asked Robinson.
Robinson knew what he meant, but Lorena didn‘t because she wasn‘t paying attention. “Yes, this is inherited, from both of your parents.”
Lorena turned to look at Robinson. “I hope it‘s a good thing you‘re talking about that our sons inherited from us.”
“Yes, Mrs. Roman, it‘s a good thing. It‘s a very good thing.”
Lorena figured out what they meant and nodded, focusing once again on her fruit.
“Did you put Carlos‘ pineapple in the fridge for him, Mom?” David asked.
Lorena nodded.
“I still can‘t believe that Carlos would eat a whole pineapple by himself, but he does it every chance he gets. He likes all fruits and vegetables, but pineapple is his favorite.”
“I have eaten a whole watermelon by myself many times. I just remove the pits and eat until only the peel is left on the table,” Robinson said, eating a huge serving of watermelon, almost a whole one.
David laughed. “You‘re kidding, right?”
“No.”
“We‘re among few kids who like vegetables, a lot,” Elmer said, joining in the conversation. I have to have my servings of fruits and vegetables every single day, and there is no vegetable in this world that I don‘t like. I remember when I was in grade school, all the kids, especially in elementary school would tell me, ‗Ewww, how can you eat that? It‘s disgusting!‘“
Robinson laughed.
“My friends would tell me the same thing.”