Chris was a good tree climber. One comfortable afternoon he was up in a tree. The sky was blue overhead. The sun was warm. He enjoyed the breeze and the dynamic movement of the tree.
Suddenly his mother burst outdoors.
“Chris! Are you fine? Did you feel that?”
He was fine, but did he feel what? There had been an earthquake. It was more noticeable indoors where it had shaken Jan. Chris, in his tree, was oblivious.
That year there were some economic earthquakes as well. The war was over. Chris’ father was able to get work in San Diego as an aeronautical engineer again but it was not steady work. The industry was in its own earthquake of sorts. Demand was volatile. Contracts were temporary and unpredictable.
The demobilization of the war effort deflated San Diego’s economy. As the economy fell in San Diego, it soared elsewhere. Bob got a job offer from Chicago. There was a construction boom in Chicago after the war. Bob was hired as a structural steel engineer.
Chris’ parents decided to make the big move. It would be good for their little family of four. It made most sense for Bob to go out first, start the new job, and look for an apartment. Jan would stay with the boys in San Diego, near her parents, until Bob got a place in Chicago for them.
Getting a place for them to live in Chicago wasn’t as easy as anticipated. Soldiers were streaming back home. They headed toward the big cities, like Chicago, that had jobs.
Every expensive long-distance telephone call between the parents conveyed the same news: Bob’s job was going well but he couldn’t find a place for the family to live.
Days became weeks and the weeks dragged by. Chris was five years old. His father had been away in the army and now he was away for work.
Chris was the little man of the house again.
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