And, as an afterthought, as Grammy was walking away from the window, she threw in one last request of her Heavenly Father, “And, help me not get impatient durin’ this whole process.”
Chapter 14
It was warm enough in the sun that Awsty was overheating in her clothing. She looked around to see if anyone on the streets was looking at her as she walked, and quickly lifted one arm to check for a perspiration stain. Completely disheartened when she saw the beginnings of one, she didn’t bother to check the other. They were, after all, a set. And what one did, the other followed suit. Instead, she clamped her arms to her sides and just partially swung her arms from the elbow down. Along with the strange gait caused from walking in her platform laced heels, she now had the not-so-slight appearance of a strutting chicken.
Feeling a sweat bead dribbling its way down her right temple, she swiped at it. In so doing, she caught one of her long black claws on a portion of her plastered down hair, and pulled it unwittingly into a curly cue on her forehead. That wouldn’t have been so bad in and of itself, but because her forehead was damp with perspiration, the curl began to slide, slowly uncurling, and working its way into one long straight strand that pointed directly at a mole over her right eyebrow.
Totally unaware of her strange appearance and gait, Awsty continued walking from business to business along the main thoroughfare. After being turned down by four fast food drive-thrus, two shoe stores, and choosing to pass three “Hiring” signs in establishments that looked too upscale to want her, she started counting rejects. After a few more to add to the list, Awsty just gave up and crossed the street to a shady park, where she all but collapsed onto a bench under a tree.
Not having thought ahead enough to bring a bottled water with her today, she instead drank in the coolness that only was available under the trees. Awsty began re-evaluating her circumstances.
Ok… so I’ve been to over ten businesses so far. And, had the same response from each one of them… ‘Sorry, we’re not hiring right now,’ or ‘Sorry, that position was just filled.’ Three of those places had ‘Hiring- Apply Within’ signs in their windows. They just didn’t want to hire me! That one place flat out lied to me. Told me the only position available had just been filled earlier this morning. They just hadn’t had the time to pull the sign out of their window… Yeah, right! Funny how before she even walked out their doors, she saw the manager go sit down at one of the tables to interview a guy. A guy who obviously got the job, because as she sat in the park, she looked up to see the manager yelling to the guy as he walked away, ‘See ya tomorrow. Get here about thirty minutes early, so we can fill out your papers before your shift starts!’
What did they want from her?! She had taken out her earring and removed her dog collar before going in. She didn’t even have any of the chains on! And, after the manager at the first place kept staring at her black lips, she dropped into a gas station restroom and used toilet paper to take off her lipstick. What more did they want from her?!
Feeling like just giving up, she slumped down on the bench, put her elbows on her knees and slid her brain into neutral. But, that didn’t last long. Before she realized it, she had several large tears sliding down her cheeks. At first she made a couple of swipes with the back of her hand, but by the third swipe, she could see a tissue being presented to her. When she lifted her head to see who was offering this small kindness, an elderly lady stood before her.
“Here, Sugar, this should help.” After Awsty accepted the proffered tissue, the woman stepped aside and sat down on the bench. She didn’t say another word. She waited for Awsty to initiate the conversation, if there was going to be one.
*****
“Lord, I don’t know what made me think of her right at this moment, but please help Awsty, wherever she is right now. I don’t know if she works or not, or if she even is around the city anywhere. But, You know exactly where she is right now. Please surround her with Your Love, and help her take a step closer to You today. And, Lord, let her see her worth to You.”
It was short, sweet and to the point. But, it was a prayer, nonetheless. At least enough of one so that Mason could erase her from his mind and get back to his studies.
Oh, man… I was supposed to call Geneva this morning. I told her I would. I forgot! I don’t have time right now. I’ll see if I get time this evening. My little ‘Awesome Beauty.’ He smiled as he thought of her, and the life they’d eventually share.
*****
“Thank you. I don’t know why I’m crying,” Awsty said, as she used the tissue to wipe away both tears and the sweat from her face.
“Are you ok, Honey? You look tired and frustrated.”
“Yeah. Both. I’m looking for work, and no place I’ve been to is hiring. I’m starting to feel like nobody will take a chance on me.”
The old woman reached down and patted Awsty’s knee as a comfort, and said nothing for a few moments. She was too busy taking in Awsty’s appearance. Even without visually scanning her up and down, the elderly woman knew exactly why she wasn’t being hired. She looked like a cross between a woman with questionable morals, a witch, and a cartoon character. She looked cheap in the whole getup she was wearing. Those shoes were just laughable! And, what happened to her face?! That long pointy hair thing hanging down, drawing attention to that forehead mole. Did she do that on purpose? What was that all about? And, it looked like she either had a bruise to the one side of her mouth, or had smeared something there on her face. She was shocked, repulsed and mesmerized by the girl’s appearance. All at the same time.
Sitting down next to Awsty, the elderly woman spoke.
“Job-hunting can be hard, huh. I remember once when I was your age, I went to an interview for a clerical position. All I wanted to do was file papers, do some typing, and make and serve coffee to the boss. When the man started the interview, he started asking me all these questions that had nothing to do with the position I was interviewing for. He asked what position I held on unions. Was I pro or con. I didn’t even know what a union was. I thought he was talking about Western Union. I told him that I’d never used their services, but they seemed like a nice convenience when people needed to send money. He just looked at me with a blank stare. But then, apparently I outdid myself on his final question. He asked who I thought the most effective President of the United States was. I told him that the current President was, because he was the only one present or past that was still living, as far as I knew. Needless to say, I didn’t get the job.
“But, within thirty minutes of being rejected by him, I got a job at the cutest little hat shop only two doors down from ‘Mr. Stupid Interviewer.’”
Awsty giggled at the old woman’s story, inclusive of the nickname for the man who interviewed her.
“My name’s Awsty.”
“And, mine’s Stella.”
“Awsty, would you like to come to my apartment, get a cold drink, maybe share a sandwich with me? Then, if you feel strong enough, I’ll release you back into the wilds.”
Giggling yet again, Awsty asked Stella where she lived.
“You’re sitting in my front yard. You thought this was a park, huh? Everybody does. But, it’s the front lawn of that big building back there,” as she pointed to a single story facility, spreading out in every direction possible, that obviously was an assisted living- or rehabilitation home.
“Although the cafeteria is closed until dinner, I have a little kitchenette in my room. I keep sandwich fixin’s, cold drinks, and plenty of chocolate there. At least it would get you out of this heat. You can re-fuel a little, then get back to job-hunting, if you want. What d’ya think?”
Awsty hesitated. Stella jumped right in. “You think I’m gonna kidnap ya, don’t ya? Well, I can see how you might think that. Inside this eighty-nine pound frame of mine lies a vicious predator. And, if I can’t subdue you by myself, I’ll get my gang of ‘oldies but goodies’ to grab their canes and wheelchairs and help me getcha. You’ll never get
away!”
Any hesitation left Awsty, as she responded with a wide grin, “Ok, but don’t try anything funny! With these weapons,” she said, displaying her long black fingernails, “I can eviscerate any living, breathing animal in five seconds flat!”
Stella burst out laughing at this. This girl wasn’t as scary as she looked. She reached over and patted Awsty’s hand, then took hold of it, and they walked back to the facility hand-in-hand, giggling over silly and unimportant things all the way.
Chapter 15
“Hi, Stella. Who do we have here?” asked an old man with a walker, who stopped his halted gait for a moment to point at Awsty.
“Oh, hi, Robert. This is Awsty, my new friend. She came to visit me today,” Stella responded, winking at Awsty. They were still holding hands at this point, but Awsty broke loose long enough to take a few steps toward Robert.
“Hi, Awsty. I’d come shake your hand, but between this walker and this oxygen setup, I’m getting slower by the day.” He smiled at her. She smiled back.
Closing the gap completely between them, Awsty shook his hand as she spoke. “Glad to meet you, Robert. Hey, can I ask you a question?”
Without any hesitation he answered, “No, I’m sorry. I can’t go out on a date with you. I was married to my sweetheart for 56 years before she passed, and I’m not lookin’ for anyone to replace her.” Stella could see that Awsty was smiling at his response. And, it was the kind of smile that would break into a giggle within seconds, if not diffused, so she took a few steps forward before that could happen, and said to Robert, “Robert, I don’t think Awsty was going to ask you out on a date. Everyone around here knows that your heart will always belong to Ginny. I think it was about something else, right, Awsty?” Stella winked at Awsty. And, although she was not quite sure the reason for the wink, she smiled again at Robert and said, “Yeah. I’ve seen people use these walkers before. And, I’ve always wondered what they were like. Would it be rude if I asked you if I could just take a few steps using yours?”
“Oh, Austria, no. It wouldn’t be rude at all. You’ll never get anything in life unless you ask. C’mere.” He propped himself against the hallway wall, and relinquished the use of his walker. Awsty took hold of the handle bars and scooted ten feet away, then returned those same ten feet to Robert’s side.
“Well,” Robert said as he grinned and reclaimed his walker, “was it everything you ever dreamed it’d be?”
“It’s almost exactly how I thought it’d be. But, I think I’m pretty awkward using it.”
“If you had on some tennis shoes or somethin’, it would probably be easier.”
“You’re probably right. Robert, thank you for giving me this new experience today.”
As Awsty and Stella turned to go on down the hall to Stella’s room, Stella took hold of Awsty’s hand, leaned toward her and whispered, “Alzheimer’s.” That simple word made something well up in Awsty’s heart. She let go of Stella’s hand, turned, and headed back to Robert, who was still standing where they’d left him. He seemed to be breathing harder. Awsty put an arm around Robert’s shoulder and squeezed. He leaned into it. She was afraid that if she said anything aloud, she’d cry, so she just whispered, “Nice to meet you, Robert.”
As she returned to Stella’s side and they continued their walk down the hall, Robert, with difficulty, said, “When you leave today, drop by my room first,” as he pointed to a corner and pointed to indicate she should turn right onto a different hall.
“Room 307. My daughter rations out a certain amount of chocolate candy bars for me monthly. I’ll share two of them with ya, if you’ll come by.”
A lump found its way to Awsty’s throat. She was smart enough to know that Robert was trying to bribe her to come visit him before she left. She could spare a few minutes. She gave him the OK sign, then turned her attention back to Stella.
*****
Pastor Greg was having trouble concentrating today. He was glad that today was Monday, his day off. He knew he had a lot of work to start into tomorrow when all the church staff returned to all their duties of leadership. Today would have been impossible for him. He still had lots of “down” days since his wife’s passing. Almost two years ago! It didn’t feel much like his world had moved on, but he guessed it had.
Using the thumb of his left hand to play with the wedding ring that was still located on his ring finger, his thoughts went elsewhere. I never dreamed I’d be alone again at this age. We were supposed to have one or two kids by now, and be living in that cottage over on Cottage Lane. He smiled, yet again, when he thought of how the house style and the street shared a name. He and Sarah had been saving tirelessly for a number of years, preparing for the time when they could move themselves and their children into it. His smile became even broader when he remembered how Sarah had insisted that home would come up for sale when they were ready. Was that a silly dream, or faith? She had even convinced him somehow that it would be so. He breathed a deep sigh and decided it was time today to get in motion and do something… anything.
Just before raising himself off his desk chair, he had an unexpected flashback of meeting a very strange and terrifying-looking girl yesterday at church. What was her name? Something unusual. Wasn’t even a real girl’s name. Almost like it was… what… a child’s nickname? She obviously disliked being at church. Her grandmother probably made her come. She was not a happy camper! Twenty-one years old… Didn’t she say she was twenty-one? She looked more like a teenager acting out her ‘growing pains.’
“Lord, that girl that came to church yesterday that was all dressed in black… Take care of her. She looked mad, sad, frustrated, unhappy… Well, Jesus, I guess what I’m saying is that she lacked any fruits of the spirit I could see. There was no joy, peace, love… None of the attributes Your children have. Please take care of her. Bring her purpose and, of course, Your Salvation. Let someone break through that hard shell of hers today, and show her some unconditional love, and care for her and about her, just the way she is. Thank you, Jesus.”
Rising from his chair, he grabbed his keys, headed out the front door, and left to go for his regular Monday afternoon visit with his grandmother, Stella. He smiled when he thought of his grandma. She loved Jesus with a passion. And, no matter what was going on in her own life, she found time to show love to almost everyone near her. Trenton-Taylor Assisted Living was sure blessed to have her residing there. He just knew she was spreading sunshine throughout that place.
Oh, I need to take her a few candy bars and a couple of those crunchy yogurts she likes. I’ll stop at the grocery store over on Belton Street and pick those up for her before I go see her.
*****
“Bye, Stella. Thank you for letting me spend time with you today. I liked your peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It reminded me of my grandmother, the way you cut off the crusts. I’m gonna drop by Robert’s room before I leave. He seems lonely. Oh, can I come and visit you again sometime? You’re a good listener, and I don’t think anyone has ever made me laugh as hard as I have today with you.”
“Pretty Girl, you can come visit me any time you want to. I’m sorry you have to leave so soon. My grandson comes on Mondays to visit me. I wish you two could meet. He’s a great person, and a godly man. And, if you think I’m a good listener…”
“Maybe next time, Stella. Thank you again.” And with those last comments, Awsty exited Stella’s door, turned left, then turned right at the corner, and headed to Room 307 to visit Robert for a few minutes.
‘Pretty girl?’ Did she just call me pretty girl? No one’s ever called me that in my whole life, except, of course, Grammy.
That thought caused Awsty to smile. And wearing that smile as her only ‘face jewelry’ she knocked at Robert’s door, entering when he opened it. In that instant, Awsty decided that she’d focus on Robert’s need for friendship, instead of today’s unsuccessful day of job-hunting.
*****
As Pastor Greg walked up the hall to his
grandmother’s room, he saw the back of a young woman retreating around the corner at the far end of the hall. He only caught a quick glimpse.
Huh… That kind of looks like that girl at church yesterday. Lord, don’t forget that girl… Well, I guess I should say ‘young woman.’ She needs You!
*****
As Awsty left through the front doors of Trenton-Taylor Assisted Living, she thought to herself that even though her job-search went nowhere, this had been the best afternoon she’d had in a long, long time. She actually enjoyed being there with those elderly people.
About fifteen feet outside the front doors, on the flowered walkway, an elderly woman with a cane was slowly coming up the walkway to enter the building. Awsty noticed that she had dropped a green piece of paper behind her. Thinking it might be important, she swooped it up and called back to the woman.
“Hey!”
The old soul turned around to see Awsty in all her fearsomeness, calling her. She had avoided her in the first place when they passed each other a moment ago by ducking her head for a moment. She now had a second of semi-panic grip her heart. What did that scary girl want?! She needed to hurry into the building!
But, Awsty pursued her at a quick pace, catching up to her before she could open the door and go hide within.
“I think you just dropped this and I didn’t know if it might be important. “
When Awsty looked at the paper in her hand, she said, “Oh, yeah, I guess it is important. It’s money.”
When handed the five dollar bill that indeed was important to the woman, she smiled reservedly at Awsty and said, “Thank you, Sugar.”
“You’re welcome.”
She called me ‘Sugar.’ I like it here. These old people are friendlier to me than anyone has been all day, in fact, in a long time. I wonder if there are any jobs here that I could qualify for. I can do housekeeping I guess, or something like that. Maybe I’ll come back tomorrow and see.