Grandpa Hal knows he has to go. He has to leave his family and become a man. Sometimes, maturation can be toxic for families.
I know that when I turned 18, I left home. Unlike Grandpa Hal, my departure was planned. I left to go to college. But in some ways, I can relate to Grandpa Hal. When I left home, I was leaving a lot behind – a lot that I wanted to leave behind and pretend had never existed.
I moved over 2,000 miles when I left home, and I never really came back. There is no going back, I guess.
c.g.larson 