Shadows of Shelly

Shelly - Three Years Later 2

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TWO

Shelly - Three Years Later

Brit had been a loner. At first, he was reluctant to blend in with our family. Each day noticed him adapting and becoming more included. His esteem rose, and life had purpose.

The life insurance and death benefits from his Dad went into an account that the lad could use for education or to start a business. Between his acquired Dad and uncles, the growing young man learned the techniques and philosophies of FF. His muscles and body shaped into that of an athlete who wanted to excel in the facets of FF.

The young man was no longer a skinny weakling. Brit participated in football (soccer) and cross country running. He fought in the Junior Division of FF and became Champion of Northern region of Thailand with an amateur classification.

At school the reformed bully was soft spoken, mild mannered and polite. Momma Ling Noy, yhr community and Uncle Rufus kept him busy with odd jobs, and spending money. Uncle Bobby taught him metallurgy and how to shape and reshape metal.

He purchased an old run-down 1960 Ford Econoline truck. He rebuilt and installed an engine that had twice the horsepower, and went twice as far on a tank of gas. His smart sense of fashioned led him to shape a new body that made the truck look like it came from the future. Engineers salivated over his design. He polished that truck until it looked like glass.

All the girls in school wanted to make friends with me and his other sisters. They craved to be close to him. He was oblivious of his manly looks, and thought they were silly. My Dad and three uncles had a great influence on him. There was a desire to be like them which instigated the yearning to want to make the Air Force his career. Graduation presented him with an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy.

Brit has always been the smartest boy in in school. He could look at a complicated calculus math problem and solve it in his mind.

The old truck did not run when bought it for less than two thousand Baht ($100.00.) The vehicle was more rust than metal. He envisioned what it would look like and fashioned a detailed drawing by free hand.

Most kids would turn in a five-page theme, but he would submit fifty pages of a thesis in scholastic form with foot notes.

The broadness of his knowledge is unlimited. That is why he was taking advance University classes while a junior in high school. He completed the academic requirements for the Thai Military Academy in one year and was commissioned in the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) as a pilot officer.

Daddy taught him to fly multi-engine private airplanes. He had night flying and instrument certifications. He was qualified to fly the C-47 and C-130 cargo aircraft in the RTAF.

Brit's ability to speak, read and write poetry in English, Thai, Chinese, Hindi and Russian was eerie. He was exposed to those spoken languages from other students in school. The challenge instigated him to take formal classes at the university in those languages.

Both Thais and Americans claimed him as a product of their school system. However, he was his own man. His gift of knowledge was not unique, but rare. Brit could communicate on level with a child, or a genius like Einstein. To many he was like any teenager, and to others he had the wisdom of Solomon tempered with common sense.

His only lack of understanding was females. He fears women, but women are attracted to him. The only women with which he felt comfortable is his Mom and sisters, especially me. I bossed him around like a domineering wife instead of a little sister. He dotes on me more than all his knowledge and ability. I am the center of his life.

His increase of knowledge magnified and bloomed to a level of PHD in many areas. Brit also possessed a practical perceptive and application of commonplace life. He had both the academic and everyday approach with his existence.

No one accused him of being conceited. He was just plain lovable Brit.