could ask for a better son all these years. It isn’t right for you to miss out on things anymore. I know there’s not much out here to make life exciting, but your father and me, that’s the way we want it. It don’t mean you gotta put up with living out here. There’s so much of this country out there, Son. Find what you’re looking for. God knows you won’t find it here.”
“I’ve been quiet long enough on this, Charlie, maybe too long. We don’t need any more trucks right now, and even if we did, what’s more important, your son’s future or a stupid truck?” she continued, tears running down her cheeks as if she were standing in the rain. “I won’t let you do this, Charlie; I won’t let you decide for him what he has to decide for himself. We can afford it and you know it. We’re not poor; we have more than most folks around here. Look at him, Charlie, look at him, can’t you see it in his face, can’t you hear him begging you with his silence?”
Charlie’s eyes met Dick’s and for once he knew that Alice was right. He loved his son more dearly than anything. Don’t you protect the ones you love, he thought? Was he so wrong in wanting to keep his son by his side, even for just a little while longer? Why couldn’t things stay the same? Why did Dick have to grow up? It isn’t fair, he thought, the world’s taking him away from me and I can’t stop it.
“Son,” Charlie said as he reached across the table and placed his hand on Dick’s. “I should have known your heart wasn’t in this place, I should have seen it, Son, but I didn’t want to. You’re all we have and we won’t lose you over this. If you really got your mind set on trying more schooling, then it’s done. There’s no way you couldn’t make us proud of you. I’m sorry it took so long for me to see it,” Charlie said as he gently stroked Alice’s cheek, wiping her tears away with his other hand. She smiled and grabbed his hand and kissed it and reached out to Dick’s arm as the three of them just sat there for what seemed like hours.
Graduation came fast and the months seemed to fly by that summer of 1944. For his eighteenth birthday, Dick had been given a complete set of new clothes and an old pickup truck to use to travel the distance to and from Plymouth Teachers College.
Plymouth Teachers College was an old school founded in 1839 and focused on educating future teachers. It was located in the center of town, with about four thousand residents year-round and a vacation spot for thousands more. Plymouth’s beautiful valley setting had made it an ideal place for summer vacations and for travelers visiting the White Mountains. As the area grew in popularity and traffic, there sprouted more and more restaurants, lodges, and inns to accommodate them. All of these hospitality facilities offered meals and the local products sold under the Merrill name were a natural.
Dick’s first year at Plymouth was a difficult one. Although he commuted to Plymouth each day from home, he had never been involved in an atmosphere with so many people before and, to suddenly be in the midst of it all, was awkward. He became conscious of his appearance, new wardrobe or not, and had to work very hard at opening up in his new surroundings. Dick had decided to major in History and was planning on teaching young children when he graduated. While volunteering for work at St. Barnaby’s over the last few years, Dick had grown fond of assisting Father Gavin in his religion classes to the youngsters every Saturday morning during the school year. He found the Bible stories that the children were read to be a peaceful but effective way to teach them about God and the other saints. It was from these sessions that Dick felt most at ease in talking to people and, as he participated more and more in the religion classes, he gained confidence in speaking before other groups as well.
On Sundays, Dick now served as a lector at Mass at St. Barnaby’s
“I’ve been quiet long enough on this, Charlie, maybe too long. We don’t need any more trucks right now, and even if we did, what’s more important, your son’s future or a stupid truck?” she continued, tears running down her cheeks as if she were standing in the rain. “I won’t let you do this, Charlie; I won’t let you decide for him what he has to decide for himself. We can afford it and you know it. We’re not poor; we have more than most folks around here. Look at him, Charlie, look at him, can’t you see it in his face, can’t you hear him begging you with his silence?”
Charlie’s eyes met Dick’s and for once he knew that Alice was right. He loved his son more dearly than anything. Don’t you protect the ones you love, he thought? Was he so wrong in wanting to keep his son by his side, even for just a little while longer? Why couldn’t things stay the same? Why did Dick have to grow up? It isn’t fair, he thought, the world’s taking him away from me and I can’t stop it.
“Son,” Charlie said as he reached across the table and placed his hand on Dick’s. “I should have known your heart wasn’t in this place, I should have seen it, Son, but I didn’t want to. You’re all we have and we won’t lose you over this. If you really got your mind set on trying more schooling, then it’s done. There’s no way you couldn’t make us proud of you. I’m sorry it took so long for me to see it,” Charlie said as he gently stroked Alice’s cheek, wiping her tears away with his other hand. She smiled and grabbed his hand and kissed it and reached out to Dick’s arm as the three of them just sat there for what seemed like hours.
Graduation came fast and the months seemed to fly by that summer of 1944. For his eighteenth birthday, Dick had been given a complete set of new clothes and an old pickup truck to use to travel the distance to and from Plymouth Teachers College.
Plymouth Teachers College was an old school founded in 1839 and focused on educating future teachers. It was located in the center of town, with about four thousand residents year-round and a vacation spot for thousands more. Plymouth’s beautiful valley setting had made it an ideal place for summer vacations and for travelers visiting the White Mountains. As the area grew in popularity and traffic, there sprouted more and more restaurants, lodges, and inns to accommodate them. All of these hospitality facilities offered meals and the local products sold under the Merrill name were a natural.
Dick’s first year at Plymouth was a difficult one. Although he commuted to Plymouth each day from home, he had never been involved in an atmosphere with so many people before and, to suddenly be in the midst of it all, was awkward. He became conscious of his appearance, new wardrobe or not, and had to work very hard at opening up in his new surroundings. Dick had decided to major in History and was planning on teaching young children when he graduated. While volunteering for work at St. Barnaby’s over the last few years, Dick had grown fond of assisting Father Gavin in his religion classes to the youngsters every Saturday morning during the school year. He found the Bible stories that the children were read to be a peaceful but effective way to teach them about God and the other saints. It was from these sessions that Dick felt most at ease in talking to people and, as he participated more and more in the religion classes, he gained confidence in speaking before other groups as well.
On Sundays, Dick now served as a lector at Mass at St. Barnaby’s
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