Joe

Sixteen years old …

It was really ridiculous. He had to have the talk with the boy at some stage, but if he waited for him to start shaving, then Ben felt that he might never get to talk to him about all of it. He was sixteen and still there was no sign of him having to go anywhere a razor at all! Ben had been in his youngest son’s room the other night though when he was getting undressed and he had noticed the development of his upper body muscles. Joe had always been very skinny, but since he’d begun work full-time on the ranch he was finally beginning to fill out and develop some hardened muscles, a sure sign that he was growing up. The time had come to discuss certain things with his son and Ben wasn’t prepared to put it off any longer.

He had the distinct idea that Joe had already begun to be interested in girls … and he knew for sure that girls were already interested in Joe. His youngest son was an extremely handsome boy and he didn’t blame those young ladies really, but Joe needed to know certain things and Ben couldn’t put this off any longer. It was time for his fatherly duty yet again! As he knocked on the door of the youngster’s bedroom, he sighed with relief at the thought that this was the last time he would have to do this. “Joseph?” he asked as he opened the door. “Are you busy son?”

“No Pa,” called out Joe and there was instantly a scrambling noise from inside the room. Ben wondered what his son had been up to, but Joe was sitting demurely on the edge of his bed with an innocent expression on his face by the time his father was inside the room …. the expression that always caused Ben to feel suspicious.

“What were you doing?” he asked, looking around the room.

Joe gave his father his best puppy-dog look … another expression that always caused Ben anxiety, as it usually signalled that his son was plotting some kind of trouble. “Me?” said Joe innocently as he grinned at his father. “I’m not up to nuthin Pa.”

Ben wasn’t so sure that the statement was totally true, but he felt it best to let the subject drop. He sat down on a chair next to the bed and faced his son. “I was thinking that you and I might have a talk,” he said.

Joe’s grin immediately turned to an anxious stare. “I didn’t do it,” he said quickly.

“Do what?” asked his father, giving the boy a strange look.

Joe hesitated. “Nuthin,” he muttered. “I mean … whatever you was gonna say I did,” he added after a moment.

“I wasn’t going to say that you’d done anything,” replied his father. “That sounds like a guilty conscience talking, young man.”

“Me?” replied Joe, his expression turning to an innocent one again. “I ain’t got no guilty conscience Pa. What did you wanna talk about?”

Ben gave his son another suspicious look before commencing. “Just things,” he said casually. “I thought it was about time that you and I had a talk about life.”

Joe’s eyes widened and his grin became wider. “Is this the growing up talk?” he asked excitedly. “Adam said you’d likely be havin it with me soon.”

“Adam said?” replied Ben, surprised. “When were you talking to Adam about this?”

Joe waved his hand casually in the air. “Oh sometime back,” he said as he sat up on the bed and settled himself in anticipation. “I always ask him lotsa things and he gives me lotsa answers … but he said that it’d be best ta discuss some of it with you when you had the growing up talk with me.” He looked at his father eagerly. “Is this it?” he asked.

Ben was somewhat taken aback by the boy’s attitude, but in truth he felt that he should have expected it. Joe didn’t keep much to himself and his thoughts and feelings were usually right out there for everyone to see and hear, so having the growing up talk as he put it really wasn’t the sort of thing to faze him at all. “Well yes,” he replied. “I suppose you could call it that.”

Joe nodded. “Good,” he said happily. “Cause there’s an awful lot of stuff that I wanna ask ya Pa,” he said.

Ben swallowed, not at all sure what was going to come out the boy’s mouth next and dreading it. “Yes?” he said, trying to sound casual. “Like what son?”

Joe settled himself even more comfortably on the bed and gave his father an eager look. “Like kissing,” he said. “I’ve watched Adam when he thought I wasn’t around …. you know Pa, just to get the idea of how ta do it … anyways, I reckon that he kisses real good. Mitch says that a fellar shouldn’t open his mouth when he does it, but Adam does open his mouth …. I know, cause I’ve seen him and the girls …. There are lotsa them you know Pa … once I started watching fer it, I noticed that Adam kisses an awful lot of girls …. I reckon he’s right popular. Do ya think that I’ll be popular with girls Pa?”

“Well …”

“I hope so …. Cause I’m really starting to like em,” continued Joe. “That Becky is the sorta girl I’d like to kiss …. Anyway, so what is the best thing … to keep your mouth closed or not? What do ya reckon Pa?” He looked at his father intently.

“Well … I think really depends on the girl,” Ben said, not really sure how to answer that one. “I wasn’t really thinking of kissing though Joseph.  I thought we could talk about …”

“And another thing,” continued Joe, unabashed. “Do girls like fellars more with hairy chests? Adam says that they do, but I reckon that just cause he’s all hairy. I don’t think I’m ever gonna get hairy Pa.” He looked down at his own body miserably and then pulled up his shirt for his father to see his bare torso. “See? I ain’t got one hair at all.” He let the shirt drop again. “Cept fer a few other places,” he added as he leant forward towards his father. “You know where I mean, don’t ya Pa?” He sat back again and crossed his arms over his chest. “Is a hairy fellar better looking to girls?”

Ben cleared his throat, momentarily taken aback by his son’s candour. “I don’t think so,” he said. “I’m sure that girls look past a man’s physical …”

“Gee I sure hope so,” interrupted Joe. “Cause I reckon I’m bound ta be a bit underdeveloped for a while yet.” He put up his arm and made a muscle of his bicep. “But I’m coming along, don’t ya think Pa?”

“Yes son, you’re …”

“Anyways, I heard Adam telling his friend Ross that a fellar with lotsa body hair is just naturally attractive to women. Just cause he’s got it don’t mean that everyone else hasta does it?  I mean … how does he know? … Hey Pa?” Joe bent down and pulled up on of the legs of his trousers and showed his father his bare leg.

“Yes?”

“This hair on my legs is sure coming in thicker right about now. Do ya reckon that’s a sign of things to come?” Joe dropped the trousers again. “I sure hope so.” He gave his father another intense look.

Ben nodded his head. “I’m sure it is son,” he said. “Which brings me to shaving …”

Joe sighed as he fingered his chin. “I sure hope I start soon,” he said. “I’ve been watching Hoss and Adam … just to know what tp do, ya understand Pa … so I reckon I’ll be OK when I do … I’ve been practising in front of the mirror with Adam’s razor so I’ll be ready.” He gave his father a defensive look. “I didn’t ask or nuthin, but I know he wouldn’t mind,” he added. “A fellar has gotta be ready for things like that.”

“I was sort of hoping that I could teach you,” said Ben.

Joe waved his hand in the air casually. “Thanks,” he said. “But I’ll be right Pa. I think I’ve got the hang of it.” He sat forward again. “Can I ask ya something else?”

“Yes of course,” said his father, his head spinning with all the talk coming from his son. “What is it son?”

“Well … when people … you know …. do it …” began Joe. He gave his father a quizzical look. “You know what I mean, don’t ya Pa?” he asked.

Ben began to feel somewhat flustered. “Well yes,” he said. “That’s something I thought we should talk about actually Joe. I wanted to make sure that …”

“Oh I know all about how to,” said Joe. “I just wanted to ask one thing but.”

“Yes?” asked Ben weakly.

“Well if the people ain’t married or nuthin … is there a way to make sure that a baby don’t come?” Joe gave his father an intent look and Ben went rather weak at the knees. “I’m only asking cause I thought I should know,” added Joe. “Adam wouldn’t tell me. He said that I should ask you.”

“You’ve talked about this with Adam?” asked Ben, swallowing.

“Well yeah,” said Joe. “I done told ya that before didn’t I?” He looked confused for a moment. “Well I thought I did,” he said. “Anyways, I wondered if there was, cause a fellar should know.” He gave his father an expectant look.

Ben cleared his throat again. “Joseph, that isn’t something that any decent man needs to know about,” he said. “I would hope that you wouldn’t be concerning yourself about such things until you meet the right girl and decide to settle down and …”

“Well yeah,” interrupted Joe. “But I was just wondering.” He sighed. “Guess you don’t know either then. Well anyway Pa, I was thinking …” Ben swallowed again as he wondered what his son was going to come out with this time. “I was thinking that fellars probably use somethin when they go upstairs with the saloon women huh? Otherwise there’d be lotsa babies being born all the time. Some of them fellars go up there an awful lot ya know Pa.”

“What do you know about that?” asked his father sternly. “I hope you haven’t …”

“Heck no!” said Joe quickly. “Not me! Still … a fellar hasta be ready, don’t ya think Pa?”

“At your age I should think that all you’d be worried about is meeting the right sort of girl,” said his father. “Nothing more.”

“Oh I am,” Joe assured his father. “Still, a fellar can’t help but wonder … you know?” He gave his father an eager look. “Is there anything else I’ve missed out?” he asked.

“No,” said Ben weakly, feeling that they’d covered more topics that he cared to think about. “I think that about covers it son.”

“Good,” said Joe. “But you’ll let me know if there’s anything else, won’t ya Pa? I’d hate to have left something out cause I didn’t know to ask bout it.”

“I certainly will,” replied his father, standing up and not at all surprised to find that he was experiencing a rather weak feeling in his knees. “Good night son.”

“Night Pa,” said Joe, grinning up at his father. “I’m glad we had the growing up talk. I learnt a lot.”

Ben smiled rather weakly. “So did I son, so did I,” he muttered as he left the room.

The End