My momma had always told me, “Jaden, be a good boy, always. Don’t look for trouble and don’t look for fights. But don’t you ever be afraid to defend yourself.” Momma was gone now though. So was my dad. The nice people at church told me they were in heaven.
Now I was living with Mr. and Mrs. Evergreen. The people at the scary place told me they were my foster parents. I don’t know what foster means, but I know what parents mean. And Mr. and Mrs. Evergreen are not my parents. I can’t even pretend they are. My parents loved me and treated me well. Mr. and Mrs. Evergreen don’t love me or treat me well. Mr. Evergreen says I’m different. But not in the way momma used to say it. She used to say I was “beautifully different” and then kiss me on the cheek. I liked that. But Mr. Evergreen says I’m different in a bad way. He calls me colored and ugly. I always think of what Momma used to say to me when he says that, especially the last part, about defending myself. The only problem was that momma never taught me how to defend myself. The only thing my daddy said was, “Never punch.” I obeyed that. I really did. I never punched any of the kids at the scary place, or Mr. and Mrs. Evergreen. I needed to find my momma and daddy so they could teach me how to defend myself.
The nice people at church said they were heaven. Well, why can’t I go to heaven? I bet it’s very far away, like 100 miles! But I needed to know! Momma and daddy needed to finish what they were saying!
I made a plan. I packed my backpack with animal crackers, my special flashlight, and some clothes. I opened the door and went to look for heaven.