The Ties That Bind

Chapter 4

     Sunday morning started out the same as any other Sunday morning; the children getting up at 6 a.m., showering and dressing in their best clothes. Mr. Milton, the head of the orphanage, supervised the boys while his wife was on the floor below supervising the girls through the same monotonous routine.

     For the most part, the children were well behaved with only occasional breaks from the norm, usually from the youngest children.

     At present, 16 boys and 11 girls lived at the orphanage; most of them were here due to the death of their family members or, as in a few instances they were left there as babies; usually, though, the babies were quickly adopted out. As such, there weren't often babies at St. Jerome's; it was more difficult placing older children with families.

     Kasden was the oldest child still living at the orphanage, a senior in high school, and once he graduated, he would be leaving to find his own place in the world like so many others before him. It was the same for all the children who grew up here, they each knew what to expect, and the orphanage staff did their best to help them be prepared for the time they would have to leave.

     St. Jerome's Orphanage was operated by the Catholic church and staffed by local members of the church from the community. It was located on property next to the church's grounds. It was named after St. Jerome Emiliani (the patron saint of orphans), who at one time had been the mayor of a city in Italy.

     After a war left the city and the surrounding countryside devastated, Jerome Emiliani had devoted himself to alleviating the suffering of his beloved people. Using his own money, he rented a house for orphans of the war, fed, clothed, and educated them.

     He had committed his life and all he owned to helping others. He had founded orphanages in other cities as well as a hospital, and surprisingly, even a shelter for prostitutes.

     After a breakfast of hot cereal with milk and toast, the children were led into the chapel for Sunday Mass. Most of the children were bored, but under the watchful eyes of Mr. and Mrs. Milton, as well as Father Phillip none of them dared to do more than wiggle in the hard wooden pews.

     Kasden, unlike most of the other children, loved Mass (the only child among the group that did). His favorite part was Father Benjamin's homily, where he read from the scriptures and explained the meanings that lay behind them.

     The hymns were his second favorite part, lifting and calming his soul for a brief while from the sadness he sometimes felt, even after 12 years living here. Being in church brought a sense of peace that he rarely felt anywhere else.

     Simon, sitting next to his friend was unaffected by any of it. Though he was careful to keep his thoughts and feelings to himself where he couldn't be overheard by one of the priests. Kasden was well aware of his friend's opinions on the subject.

     Simon didn't believe in any of it - why he couldn't explain - but he had no intention to continue to follow the faith once he was old enough to leave the orphanage and be on his own. It wasn't that he was ungrateful, because he truly was grateful to the church for what they were doing for him and the others; he appreciated everything that the church had done for him - he just felt that religion wasn't for him.

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     A piano played softly, the music drifting through the air, barely heard over the noise of the playground. Children were running after balls, playing with dolls, and doing what children do when they're outside and the weather is nice. They ignored the music, as it was something they were very familiar with, hearing it every Sunday after Mass.