The Old Pear Tree

When Dom was born, was happiness for a lot people and concern to others. He was the first Grandkid on his father side, born in their old house on a hot summer day. The old pear tree at the front of their house was a blessing especially that day as it protected the house from the beating sun.

His mother, Leah, took off soon after giving birth, leaving him with his father and grandparents. Unaware of her mental illness and drug problems everyone hated her for leaving her second born behind and caring only for her first child who she had had with someone who meant more to her than Dom’s father.

A few years later, Leah came back trying to be a good mother and make up for the time she hadn’t been around. Dom’s father, young and naïve got fooled into this and ended up losing the custody of Dom to Leah who then took him to a different city with her oldest son. The years Dom spent with his mother he saw things no kid at his age should and sometimes lacked the basic things and attention due to his mother addiction.

Peter, Dom’s father, worked as a fisherman and was away most of the time. He was unaware of the situation. He regularly sent money to Leah but never imagined the money was not being spent on Dom. For years he tried to find ways to gain Dom’s custody but the lawyer fees made it impossible for a simple fisherman to even attempt to fight for his own son. Leah knew this and used it to her advantage. Whenever she felt like it, she’d say to Peter or his parents that they could have Dom for a few weeks as long as they’d fly them all down and commit to watch her two boys while she was "having a break" doing whatever she pleased. And they gave in every time.

Dom might’ve not been a genius but he was not stupid. He learnt from a very young age to manipulate people and bully little kids to make himself feel smart. But nobody knew because Dom was quite the actor, he would put up a caring act towards the little ones whenever adults were around.

Flying back and forth for many years at any time, Dom learnt school wasn’t as important. He felt quite the genius. He was “that smart” he could always catch up. Grandparents blinded with love thought overcompensating him with everything he asked for and exaggerating his talents would make up for not having a caring mother, instead, they all together created an arrogant, selfish fool.

When Dom was almost ten, his mum gave full custody to his dad. There was happiness in the air. Being in the full custody of Peter now, his grandparents had to take care of him. Peter’s work required him to be gone most of the time and his parents were getting old and not fit for the challenge and the stress of taking care of the brat they had all created. Dom, greedy by nature, knew he could get more of his dad’s family as long as he played victim and exaggerate and repeat constantly the sad stories about the time he had spent with his mum. His greediness went as far as having a mental inventory of all of his dad’s belongings and recreate in his head fake scenarios. In secret he always wondered if his dad had a life insurance. “If dad's ship was to sink I could become the richest kid in town”.

But the pear tree witness of it all, knew Dom was just a kid and there was hope still. So he dropped five green pears on the neighbour’s roof, which soon came over the grandparent’s house to complain.

The neighbour, Maria, was a single mother of three kids, all young. She was from a foreign country; she was loud and sometimes unwelcome due to her olive skin and dangerous country of birth but she was very strict when it came to raising her kids. She believed kids should not be given what they want but what they need.

As she walked into the Peter’s house she overheard the conversation. Peter couldn’t give up his job, it was his only source of income and his parents were too old to raise the kid.

The door was open but she knocked anyway. She greeted everyone and explained about her broken roof due their old pear tree. Peter apologized and said he would fix it himself immediately. It looked like it was about to rain and the last thing he wanted was to cause further damage. He did so and Maria thanked him with dinner.

Once on the table, Maria told him she had overheard the conversation and even though her manners, ways and first language were different she would be happy to take care of his son if he needed. He thanked her and told her he was going to think about it. But in the absence of any other help, Dom found himself soon enough living with Maria.

Peter was soon gone for another fishing trip. Things went really well at first at Maria’s house. Dom seemed very nice and chatty but within a week the real him started to show. He had no manners, he didn’t ask nicely, he demanded. He ate like an animal, incapable of using even a simple fork. When he finished his meals it was more what was left outside the plate than what he had eaten. Even though he was 10 he was unable to remain sitting during his meals and very used to doing what he wanted whenever he wanted. There was a lot to teach him and Maria knew it.

Grandparents next door only heard Maria’s loud voice and Dom’s twisted versions of what a horrible person she was. They didn’t really like Maria but they pretended they did as they knew if she was to refuse to take care of him, the burden of taking care of the kid will be on them.

Maria knew this, not because anyone told her but because faces and words didn’t fool her, she had a way to look through the heart. That’s why she always had hope and knew Dom could be good. Yes, he had been neglected his mother love but that wasn’t everything in life. He had always had a loving father who worked hard to provide for him and had tried to raise him to the best of his experience and knowledge. Maria never blamed him. Peter was very young. She knew most young men thought that providing their kids with the material things they need was enough.

But things got worse as time passed. Dom was now twelve constantly abusing Maria’s kids and playing victim. She tried for years to toilet train him but the kid seem to be a slow learner and more than once she found herself scooping faeces off the floor next to the toilet. If Dom was too busy playing he would defecate himself in his pants and not worry about it until it was time to shower. Then either leave his dirty underwear on the plain open for her to see or toss it in the washing machine with the rest of her laundry.

She always informed Peter about all of it, but when he came from working, he was too tired to care and too happy to see his son. "Be good Dom" was all he ever said to the kid.

Maria then changed her strategy and used all the money peter sent to channel Dom’s rebel spirit through martial arts, swimming and painting lessons, even if that meant they all had to eat a little bit less. But Dom sense of entitlement was bigger; he always thought he deserved better, so all her efforts meant nothing to him.

But the pear tree was listening and hardened Maria’s heart. And against her warm and caring nature, she stopped all hugs to Dom. She thought it was the only way to gain some respect, and she was right, he began to respect her a little more. Honestly that’s all she needed from him, minimal respect.

When Dom was thirteen, Maria tried to teach him to be more independent, asked him to help her to clean the house, his room and to do his own laundry. Dom instead of looking at it as a way to learn to do things just hated her more. How could she even tell him what to do, for all he knew she was living off his father’s money. What a horrible luck he always had, always getting less than he deserved. It wasn’t fair at all. Getting things taken away from him until he behaved better, “things MY dad buys for ME”. Who does she even think she is? She had come into his life to ruin it. He wished his grandparents were younger so he could live with them and watch TV until 3:00 am, eat chocolate and sweets right before bed and not have to be told to brush his teeth or shower. At least at his grandparents he wasn’t forced to eat nasty healthy food, all he had to do was ask and whatever he wanted was dinner. “My own mum gave me so much freedom; I could do as I pleased. I was never in trouble or yelled at for disrespecting others. I am so unlucky, poor me, nobody cares”... he used to think.

Dom always thought he was smarter than everyone else and that he could fool everyone into believing any sad story he’d say to finally give into whatever he wanted. But where Maria came from, parents knew kids are not so innocent at times and would try their best to gain their ways.

Time Passed and Dom’s anger only got bigger. And Maria’s health started to deteriorate due the constant stress of looking after him. But nobody understood, even peter thought she was just being loud and crazy. When he came from fishing trips he only wanted to relax and catch up on jobs around his house. They had become a bit closer now due to Dom, so Peter in his ignorance would joke about her pronunciation, how loud she was or even criticize how much noise she could make even when eating. All of that taught Dom to feel superior and look down on Maria even more. By the time Dom was Nearly 17 Maria was done. She sat under the shade of the branches of the pear tree that were leaning towards her house and cried in silence. The pear tree felt her pain. He felt guilty for dropping those pears on her roof that morning. He knew she had tried everything. It was time to let go.

Dom had said loud and clear that he didn’t need her, he had nothing to thank her or be grateful for; in fact he was sick of her yelling and complaining.

So she didn’t speak to him again, she didn’t do anything else for him. From now on he was to cook his own meals but he’d be at his leisure. No one will tell him off. Needless to say things didn’t go too well after that, Dom moved out and ended up following his mother steps.

Maria sold her house and moved back to her country with her three kids but she took with her a few seeds from the beautiful pear tree.

Years went by and she heard by letter that Dom had turned out to be a good man, that he found love many times in the wrong people but finally found it in someone who inspired the change he needed.

She was happy. She knew it and the old pear tree knew it too. She had only been the means to an end.