We rarely saw Richard, but we often heard from Philip that his son had stopped by to drop off some groceries or bring a new blood pressure monitor. From what Philip said, we figured Richard must have been a reliable and good-hearted man.
Lately, Philip started struggling terribly with his memory; hed sometimes get lost in the neighbourhood and call his son for help. One afternoon, walking back from the GP surgery, Philip got lost, slipped, and fell down the steps, ending up with an enormous bruise across his forehead. After that incident, Richard became worried and began coming around more frequently. We assumed he was taking care of his father, driving him to hospital appointments.
Philip himself never went out anymore, and if he did, it was always accompanied by his son, so he rarely had the chance to chat with us. Richard wasnt much of a talker; he never spoke about his fathers diagnosis, but it was obvious something serious was going onhe moved in with Philip permanently. He had his own family, a young child, but he left them for his father. That was probably the cause of most of their arguments and Philips scatterbrained behaviour. I distinctly remember hearing Richard shouting at Philip once, furious that his father had found the iron, turned it on, and burned a hole in the ironing board. Another time, the fire brigade showed up at our house because Philip had put his mobile into the microwave and started a fire.
Richard was angry with his father; he thought Philip was doing all these things on purpose. In turn, Philip started saying dreadful things about his son. He would stand by the window, watching the neighbours, grumbling about Richard. He claimed his son took all his pension, tried to put adult nappies on him, fed him almost as if he were a child. Philip gave the impression he was suffering under his son, not being cared for.
I honestly cant say whos at fault, but it seems to me Philip has health issues, and his son is looking after him. Granted, Richards patience isnt limitlessin fact, sometimes he blows up. But I dont know how Id react if my parents did such reckless things myself. Richard never complains to anyone; he bears the weight of his father alone. And Philip, sick and ungrateful, seems to have lost all consciencehe speaks poorly of the son who left his wife and child to take care of him.
