Slaying My Dragons

From the time Georgie was a little boy, his life underwent powerful, life-altering changes that gave rise to his many fears; the sudden death of his beloved Grandpa Manny, his parent's divorce, his mother's and his little brother's illnesses, and especially the presence in his life of Damian and his bullies.

He was only five when he lost his grandpa, but then God seemed to compensate him with his new baby brother, Tony; someone he could love and protect. That connection created in both boys a bond that surpassed anything else in their lives, and although 5 years apart in age, they grew up together almost as contemporaries, sharing everything in their lives and holding on to each other as their anchor in dealing with all the misfortunes life dealt them. Through it all, Georgie harbored and nurtured a lot of fears, the biggest of which were the bullies at school and how to protect Tony when he couldn't even protect himself.

Skirting the bullies as he went, Georgie developed into a mature young teenager, a gifted student, and a talented dancer; pulling Tony along with him on all his new adventures and accomplishments; while at the same time dealing with the bullies as best he could. Then an unexpected ally arrives in the form of a bronze statue of St. George, given to him by his grandmother. With that statue comes hope, and faith and an awareness of all that he could be, along with a new and powerful friend.

Like everything else in life, one cannot just avoid evil and danger. While it confronted just him, Georgie was able to evade it; but when it involved Tony, he had to face it head on. In doing so, he found that he didn't have to face it alone. His help came from the most unlikely sources; his dragons (his fears and a couple of real, fire-breathing dragons), St. George, and Tony himself. Two brother: together they played, together they dreamed, together they danced, and together they fought back.