LEOPARDS DON'T CHANGE THEIR SPOTS Copyright 2013 RZEvans
Rusty Dixon sat on the edge of his cot with tears in his eyes and a lump in his throat. They had done it to him again. His father and his father's girl friend knew that he had gotten paid the day before and had waited until he was asleep; all but twenty dollars was gone. He had been thinking about this stinking situation for a few months, and he now knew what he was going to do. If his mom was still alive, this would not have been happening to him. She had known how to handle his alcoholic dad, and had been forceful enough that his dad had never dared to try to manhandle her. Rusty started putting a traveling pack together, and each day he would add a little to it as his future needs crossed his mind. He wasn't in a big hurry because he wouldn't get paid again for another two weeks. He hid the small suitcase in the back of the garage under some ratty old foam rubber mattress pads. He wondered what would become of his lazy brother and his promiscuous sister when he left, but he figured they were almost as bad as his dad and Shirley. They all could have gotten by decently if everyone worked, but he was the only one that had enough gumption to hold down a job.
On payday he got up early while the rest were still asleep, retrieved the suitcase, and walked the two miles to the warehouse as usual. The bank stayed open late on Fridays, so that afternoon he cashed his check and bought a bus ticket that took him from Texarkana clear down to Beaumont, Texas. One of his high school friends had moved to that area and setled in China, ten or fifteen miles west of Beaumont. He found a room in a boarding house, and after settling in, he gave Ed Burnett a call. Ed was working in the oilfield, and he got Rusty on with his company right away. Ed picked him up and helped him find a room in the semi-rural area of China.
Eventually Rusty saved enough money for an old car and started going out with one of Ed's cousins. Jeanette was a sweet girl, very nice looking, and had an unshakable faith in God. She was just what Rusty needed, and his admiration gradually grew into love. As he visited her church and saw her living her faith, he made the decision to accept Christ into his life. The people he met, and the kindness he received created for him a world that was completely different from the one in which his father and Shirley lived. As his financial condition improved, he declared his love for Jeanette and asked her to marry him. In two years, they were blessed with a little girl, and with the passing of another five years, they had another girl and a boy. They were a happy young family; the kids got to see a lot of grandpa and grandma Journigan, but they never saw anyone from Rusty's side of the family. A few weeks after their tenth anniversary, Jeanette asked Rusty, "Are you ever going back?"
Rusty shook his head, but the question had been in his mind forever. He had prayed for his dad and the two siblings, and he wondered if anything had ever changed. After dwelling on the matter for several weeks, he asked Jeanette if she thought he should go back. She said it was up to him; if the long absence bothered him or worried his mind, then maybe he should. Rusty said he would never subject his family to the conditions he had left. Jeanette said she understood, and if he wanted to go alone, well, that was ok. Rusty finally scheduled a week of vacation and annouonced that he would go back and check the leopard's spots. His wife just nodded, and hugged him' then she put together a small travel bag. On a misty morning he kissed his family goodbye and pointed the old Pontiac northward.
Late that evening, Rusty checked into a motel, and that night he prayed that whatever he found would allow him peace.
As he knocked on the door of his old home, there was a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. The door opened, and a grizzled older man answered the door and said, "Whadda you want?"
Rusty said, "It's me dad, Rusty."
His father scratched his beard and said, "Well, you're back, huh? You ran out on us and now you're back, no place to go huh?"
Rusty held his tongue and replied, "No, things are ok. I just came by to see how you're doing."
His dad was ready to burst forth with another rebuke, but at the last minute changed his mind. In a whiny voice, he said, "Well, things aren't going so good. Shirley left, and there is no one to take care of me, your sister has four kids, all by different guys, and she can't help. Your brother is in prison for selling. I sure could use a hundred dollars."
Rusty wasn't about to give his father money, but after talking awhile he left and made a trip to the grocery. He brought back enough canned food stuffs to keep things going for a monthe at least. He talked to his father a while longer, long enough to find that he was receiving a social security check which he was spending a significant amount of on booze.
The Pontiac covered the distance to China easily the next day, and as he greeted his precious wife and kids, he told Jeanette, "It must be rare that the leopard ever changes his spots."
Rusty Dixon sat on the edge of his cot with tears in his eyes and a lump in his throat. They had done it to him again. His father and his father's girl friend knew that he had gotten paid the day before and had waited until he was asleep; all but twenty dollars was gone. He had been thinking about this stinking situation for a few months, and he now knew what he was going to do. If his mom was still alive, this would not have been happening to him. She had known how to handle his alcoholic dad, and had been forceful enough that his dad had never dared to try to manhandle her. Rusty started putting a traveling pack together, and each day he would add a little to it as his future needs crossed his mind. He wasn't in a big hurry because he wouldn't get paid again for another two weeks. He hid the small suitcase in the back of the garage under some ratty old foam rubber mattress pads. He wondered what would become of his lazy brother and his promiscuous sister when he left, but he figured they were almost as bad as his dad and Shirley. They all could have gotten by decently if everyone worked, but he was the only one that had enough gumption to hold down a job.
On payday he got up early while the rest were still asleep, retrieved the suitcase, and walked the two miles to the warehouse as usual. The bank stayed open late on Fridays, so that afternoon he cashed his check and bought a bus ticket that took him from Texarkana clear down to Beaumont, Texas. One of his high school friends had moved to that area and setled in China, ten or fifteen miles west of Beaumont. He found a room in a boarding house, and after settling in, he gave Ed Burnett a call. Ed was working in the oilfield, and he got Rusty on with his company right away. Ed picked him up and helped him find a room in the semi-rural area of China.
Eventually Rusty saved enough money for an old car and started going out with one of Ed's cousins. Jeanette was a sweet girl, very nice looking, and had an unshakable faith in God. She was just what Rusty needed, and his admiration gradually grew into love. As he visited her church and saw her living her faith, he made the decision to accept Christ into his life. The people he met, and the kindness he received created for him a world that was completely different from the one in which his father and Shirley lived. As his financial condition improved, he declared his love for Jeanette and asked her to marry him. In two years, they were blessed with a little girl, and with the passing of another five years, they had another girl and a boy. They were a happy young family; the kids got to see a lot of grandpa and grandma Journigan, but they never saw anyone from Rusty's side of the family. A few weeks after their tenth anniversary, Jeanette asked Rusty, "Are you ever going back?"
Rusty shook his head, but the question had been in his mind forever. He had prayed for his dad and the two siblings, and he wondered if anything had ever changed. After dwelling on the matter for several weeks, he asked Jeanette if she thought he should go back. She said it was up to him; if the long absence bothered him or worried his mind, then maybe he should. Rusty said he would never subject his family to the conditions he had left. Jeanette said she understood, and if he wanted to go alone, well, that was ok. Rusty finally scheduled a week of vacation and annouonced that he would go back and check the leopard's spots. His wife just nodded, and hugged him' then she put together a small travel bag. On a misty morning he kissed his family goodbye and pointed the old Pontiac northward.
Late that evening, Rusty checked into a motel, and that night he prayed that whatever he found would allow him peace.
As he knocked on the door of his old home, there was a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. The door opened, and a grizzled older man answered the door and said, "Whadda you want?"
Rusty said, "It's me dad, Rusty."
His father scratched his beard and said, "Well, you're back, huh? You ran out on us and now you're back, no place to go huh?"
Rusty held his tongue and replied, "No, things are ok. I just came by to see how you're doing."
His dad was ready to burst forth with another rebuke, but at the last minute changed his mind. In a whiny voice, he said, "Well, things aren't going so good. Shirley left, and there is no one to take care of me, your sister has four kids, all by different guys, and she can't help. Your brother is in prison for selling. I sure could use a hundred dollars."
Rusty wasn't about to give his father money, but after talking awhile he left and made a trip to the grocery. He brought back enough canned food stuffs to keep things going for a monthe at least. He talked to his father a while longer, long enough to find that he was receiving a social security check which he was spending a significant amount of on booze.
The Pontiac covered the distance to China easily the next day, and as he greeted his precious wife and kids, he told Jeanette, "It must be rare that the leopard ever changes his spots."