When I was three years old my father kidnapped me

He told my mom he was taking me to the circus and had my uncle, my mom's brother and his best friend, vouch for him. But we went straight to the airport and hopped on a plane to St. Louis, instead. It's debateable why he took me. It could've been spite because my mother had asked for a divorce when she found out he was cheating. It could've been fear of losing me to "Charlie Brown," the man my mom was dating back then (Charles) that I affectionately gave that nickname to. It could've been because he loved me. Maybe it was all of that, or none of that. I'll never know for sure.
My mother was hysterical, of course. She went to the police and they told her that all she could do was kidnap me back. That he, as my father, had just as much a right to take me as she did as my mother. The laws in the 70s regarding these matters were vigilante. So she flew back and forth to St. Louis repeatedly, trying to find me and steal me back from him. I remember changing preschools often because she'd come looking for me at one of them and the administration would tell him the following day that they didn't want to be involved and felt it would be better if I left. She was always a day or a few hours too late.

My theory is that he eventually got tired of running and realized she'd never stop trying to find me. Plus, I was a very precocious three year old, very inquisitive. He told me that much later on. Made me think I might've been a handful, lol. Then I got sick and he didn't know what to do. So he took me to my grandmothers house nearby. She said it was pouring rain and I was lying motionless on the backseat of his car in a t-shirt and panties with a fever. She took me inside, thanked him for bringing me, and soon after we were on a plane back to L.A.
My mother was so happy to see me. As soon as we were reunited, before the hugging and the kissing, just like a good girl I told Charlie Brown what my dad had instructed me to tell him. I said "Charlie Brown, my daddy said he has a gun and he's going to shoot you," thinking nothing of my statement at all. My mother said they both just looked at one another and said "Okay baby. We're going home now."

This picture was taken while we were on the lam.
He tried to comb my hair but clearly he failed :).

It took me well into adulthood before I finally understood him and realized that he really did love me. He was never very good at showing it. Of course, by then, he was gone and I partly blamed myself, but that's another chapter. My dad passed away in July of 2003.