Free Adopted Son by Dominic Peloso Page B

the store wouldn’t fit over his head. Tom had been hoping that the kid would grow some hair, but as for now little Jim was still bald as the day he was born. Lorraine was sitting on the couch, watching TV and doing the crossword puzzle. Tom was trying an experiment. He was still hoping for a sports career from his son and, as everyone knows, you have to start them early on that path. Tom had a little pink rubber ball he had picked up last time he was in town. He rolled it slowly towards his child. As the ball passed by, Jim made no move to get it, but he did turn his head and watch it pass by. That was a good sign. The doctors had told Tom that his kid was likely to be blind, or at least have very poor eyesight, but as far as Tom could tell, he could see just fine. He played with his mobile, he turned his head when you walked into the room. No, that boy could see just fine. The doctors were wrong. The doctors were often wrong.
    Anyway, the ball experiment wasn’t a success, but Tom wouldn’t give up so easily. He went and retrieved the ball and tried again. Same result. A third experiment resulted in the ball bouncing off Jim’s shoes. The fourth time was a charm though. As the ball rolled past, Jim reached out for it. He missed and fell flat on his face, but it was a good attempt. He was getting there. Tom was very happy with the effort. “Ho ho Lorraine, would you look at that! A diving catch,” Jim said. “If he keeps that level of effort up he’ll make the majors no problem.” Lorraine glanced up from her puzzle but mostly ignored the comments. Jim was only one year old now, and Tom had been talking about ‘the majors’ for the last four months. Lorraine would be happy if Jim grew up to be a good man who held down a job and could raise a family. She didn’t need glory to feel like a successful parent.
    Tom sat Jim back up and got the ball back. He rolled it toward him again. Jim once again grabbed for the ball. He didn’t get it, but at least he didn’t fall over. Progress was being made. As Tom went to get the ball again, there was a distinct giggle from Jim. He was enjoying himself. That made Tom happy. If you’re going to succeed at something you’ve got to enjoy it. Otherwise you’ll never make it. Tom kept at it.
    Another twenty minutes of rolling passed by, and there were a few successes. Jim was able to stop the ball a few times, although nothing that could ever be considered a ‘catch.’ It was more like he fell on the ball. “Perhaps he’ll be a goalie. That’d be all right I guess,” said Tom. Lorraine ignored him.
    “Why don’t you teach him something useful, like driving a tractor, which is what you should be doing,” she said with mock irritation.
    “This is useful,” protested Tom. “You can’t get the girls without being able to play ball. You want him to get the girls don’t you?” He rolled the ball again. Another catch. “Man, this kid’s awesome. Awesome I tell you. If he’s this good now think about how great he’s going to be in a few years. It’s those long fingers, he’s gonna have quite a grip I bet.” He retrieved the ball. “We got to do something about that bald head. Can’t you knit him a cap or something? He’s going to catch cold.” Lorraine just sighed.
    He rolled the ball a little faster this time. It went right past little Jim, who fell over trying to make the grab. Then an amazing thing happened. Jim rolled over, stood up, and galloped towards the ball. He didn’t get very far, just a few feet. Then he fell over on his face. “Holy! Lorraine, did you see that! He just took his first steps! And a run too! Holy Gee he’s gonna be fast, fast I tell you.” He went over and picked his kid up. “This calls for a treat. Lorraine, where’s the ice cream?” Tom strutted into the kitchen with Jim on his shoulders. “We are the champions, we are the champions...” he sang as he left the room. Lorraine just shook here head. It was tough having two