Saturday Story - COLD

 SATURDAY STORY - FEBRUARY 20, 2021

(Happy 8th Birthday, Abby and Leah!!  I love you!!)

A work of fiction

*****

You couldn’t listen to the news anymore.  Actually, the weather report.  

“Freezing Rain” for central Texas - up to a half-inch of frozen precipitation.

“Winter Storm Watch” - that was followed a day later by “Winter Storm Warning” - More ice and snow for Austin area - stay tuned to KKAW

“Austin Energy says Power will be off overnight”

“Frigid Temperature - Record Lows”

“Watch for frozen pipes” 

“The Power Grid can’t keep up, rolling blackouts will occur”.

“Another major storm predicted for the Austin area - with up to ¼ inch of ice and 4 to 5 inches of snow on top of the ice.”

*****

Lucille Abernathy was a widow.  She lived in a mobile home just off Walburg Road.  Her lazy, no-good, jerk [author’s note - this is pg rated blog] of a husband went through money like it was water.  And, he died in his early 60s - cirrhosis of the liver.  It suited him well.  Her son was in Arkansas, and her daughter was in Alabama. She didn't see them much. Josh would call most Sunday afternoons and Amy maybe would call once a month (but with three kids under 6, Lucille knew Amy was busy).

She didn’t have much money.  Her social was fairly small from her cafeteria worker at Forbes Middle School in Georgetown.  Plus, her medication costs added up - blood pressure medicines, cholesterol medicines, plus other issues.  So, the mobile home was her home.  Her nearest neighbor worked in the pipeline industry and was working on pipelines for months and then home for months.  On the other side of that neighbor was a younger couple - well, not quite a ‘couple’ in her definition -a couple just shacking up together.  Tsk, tsk.  That isn’t God’s way.  At 73 she was still able to get around. In Georgetown for groceries and other shopping.  She had a little garden that she tended.  Just not much in her life.

She was a member of First Baptist Church and when it wasn’t a pandemic was there most every Sunday.  She missed her friends in the Golden Generation Sunday School class. They always had good discussions. She did watch the video feed - but it wasn’t the same as being there in person.

When the weather forecasters started to talk of a major winter storm, she scoffed.  Forecasting single-digit temperatures,, ice and snow in Central Texas was totally ridiculous!!! Low temps in the single digits?  Ice? Snow?  That just wasn’t going to happen.  She laughed - she thought her next job was to be a weather forecaster - she could be right about 1/2 the time - and keep her job!!

But, of course, it did.  Then she lost power.  Her mobile home was drafty at the best of times, but with power outages, freezing rain, and wind, it just wasn’t a good place to be.  And, the roads were so icy, she couldn’t drive into a shelter or motel.  And, she didn't know why her phone didn't work - otherwise, she would have called Amanda with the Golden Generation group. Oh well. she was tough.

On the coldest night, she wrapped up with four layers of clothes and fell asleep shortly after sunshine.  Without electricity, she couldn’t watch TV, couldn’t do sewing or knitting. So, she fell asleep.  She woke up sometime in the middle of the night and wrapped herself in all of her bathroom towels to help with the cold.  Somehow she fell asleep again.

Three days later, Setta from First Baptist Church stopped to visit.  The church had tried to call their elderly - but hadn’t gotten an answer.  Setta saw Lucille’s Car in the driveway, and the snow was still deep around the mobile home, but there were no tire tracks.  Knocking on the door, there was no answer.  The door was unlocked and Setta found Lucille like a mummy wrapped in - and dead.

*****

Yes, that can happen.  Maybe Lucille wasn’t the most important person in the world, but she was one of us - a human being!! LOVE WINS - she deserved some dignity.  

Even in other times of the year, we are to love the widows, the orphans, the lonely, the depressed - and really ALL people.

How about us?  Are we checking in on friends that might be in danger this year?  

HUGS!!

Karen