"I'm Home"

The winds outside carried a breeze of promise as Sam reached under his bunk bed and lugged out his stained and tattered red, blue, and yellow backpack and tossed it up and onto his bed that, if all went well, he wouldn’t have to spend another night in. Inside the backpack were Sam’s stash of goldfish crackers, packaged gummies, baby carrots, and cheese sticks that he and Simon had been stealing from the pantry and fridge when the adults were occupied watching the fifteen boys wreaking havoc on the group home or ignoring the ruckus. In between the snacks were Sam’s two prized possessions.

The first thing was ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ by Dr.Seuss, the book which he believed his parents were reading when they decided what name to give him. The second was his prized rock collection; which, from an outsider's point of view, looked like gravel in a jar, but in Sam’s eyes was a collection of moments in time he wanted to remember. Walking on the earth for five years and counting Sam’s rocks were gathered anywhere from the parking lot he found his first nickel to a rock that caught his eye in the driveway. The stale grey rock on the bottom was from his first trip to the zoo, the oval matte black rock beside that was from the bottom of the first lake he’d ever swam in, and the brownish-grey pebble on top of that he’d found inside his shoe one day after splashing in puddles following rainfall.

Without saving any room for clothes Sam decided to wear what he could. Over his blue pajamas covered in green dinosaurs, he fit on three pairs of socks, two pairs of jeans, three t-shirts, and his red sweater zipped up on top of that. It took a few tries to get his shoes on but once the velcro was pressed together Sam hopped off his bed and strapped on his backpack. With the tattered backpack on his back, his clothes layered over his pajamas and a stash of snacks Sam grabbed the last thing he needed for his biggest adventure yet, his best friend.

Walking into the back yard with a cheese stick in one hand and a leash in the other Sam whistled for the group homes giant fluffy brown and white spotted Saint Bernard. “Here Bruno!” He called out as the big dog trotted over with slobber lips as he munched up the cheese stick. Bruno was Sam’s best friend in the group home. The other boys in the home seemed to prefer watching the television or playing video games all day, meanwhile, Sam and Bruno would run around chasing sticks in the warm fresh air. In their version of fetch, Sam threw the ball and they both raced for it. He didn’t feel right leaving Bruno behind. No one else would sneak him snacks and rub behind his ears just right.

Clipping on Bruno’s bright yellow leash, Sam walked him around the house and down the gravel driveway. Once they were at the gate Sam turned around to look up at the overpopulated painted blue house he’d spent most of his life in. He could see his bunk buddy, Simon, sitting by the window in the study hall watching him. Thankfully Simon didn’t say a word. Instead, the boys waved goodbye silently before Sam turned his back on the house for the very last time. Eyes filled with wonder and a heart filled with hope, Sam and Bruno stepped away from the gate and onto the concrete squares on the sidewalk calling Sam’s name towards his biggest adventure yet.

It must have been a funny view for anyone driving by. There, on Fifth Avenue, was a little boy layered in clothes with a tattered backpack, walking a dog that outweighed him in size by a mile. If Bruno was walking on the other side of Sam you wouldn’t even know Sam was there. From afar it almost appeared as though Bruno was walking Sam instead of the other way around.

As they walked along the cracked sidewalk Sam analyzed each house. Without much of an idea of what to look for in a home, Sam went off of his gut feeling. The first home that caught his eye was a big three-story brick house with a swing set on the front lawn. The swing set was promising. The buildup of air beneath your feet and the idea of swinging so high you would take off into space always made Sam’s heart race. He didn’t care much for the monkey bars or slides, but the swings? If all Sam had was a swing to play on you would never hear him complain. The swing set would have sold Sam on that home right away if it wasn’t for one small downside. At the bottom of the bright yellow door was an even smaller door which meant one thing, there had to be a cat around. Despite being a big burly slobbery dog, Bruno had one fear that Sam had discovered so far, and that was cats. Bruno was a big dog who was terrified of fluffy creatures the size of his paws. Bruno’s fear of cats and Sam’s disinterest in hitting the other boys over the head with random objects seemed to be what brought the unlikely pair together.  Neither dog nor boy really fits into their milieu.

The second house Sam stopped in front of had a girl and boy roughly his age playing hopscotch on the paved driveway. Having not even thought of choosing a home with siblings Sam wondered if maybe it would be different with a sister, the only girls he’d ever encountered were at summer camp the year before but they had cooties. Before he could step off the pavement the girl caught his eye and stuck her tongue out at him. Sam faltered in his step and quickly turned back to the sidewalk, “I don’t think I’m going to like her” he mumbled before tugging Bruno further away down the sidewalk.

After another block, Sam paid more attention to jumping over cracks and lines that broke through the pavement then the houses that lined them. He didn’t want to break his daddy’s back or his momma’s spine before he even met them. “Maybe this is hopeless Bruno”

Strolling along the streets Sam found himself at the beach. The layers of clothing that seemed like a good idea hours ago was now like an eternal sauna surrounding him. Stripping off the layers of clothing that were beginning to suffocate him, Sam tugged Bruno down to the water. This part of the beach was void of people as the boys dove into the refreshing ocean water. The sun shone off the waves and in the distant horizon, a darkened silhouette of a boat caught Sam's eye. “I’ve always wanted to be a pirate. What do you think Bruno?” Sam joked, splashing the dog and yelling “argh” Like a pirate.

It didn’t take long before all the walking and splashing started to wear Sam out so he layered back up and munched on a cheese stick as he walked. Offering a bite to Bruno Sam laughed as the dog ate the rest in one bite and licked his face clean.

As Sam and Bruno continued walking down the shoreline a house perched up on the hill caught Sam's eye. This time there were no kids or swing-set to capture his attention but a feeling of belonging deep in his stomach. Under the covered porch the screen door was perched open and the smell of pie wafted into the air. Bruno barked at the home and  Sam smiled.

“This is it Bruno” Sam muttered into Bruno’s ear and marched up the stairs and towards the door. Swinging the door open Sam dropped his backpack on the floor and released Bruno’s leash.

“I’m home!” Sam called out as Bruno barked along.