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Just about my whole life, I have felt out of place. I have never liked parties or groups of people I don’t know well.
I think over the last twenty years I have been feeling that more. It probably has to do with my hearing disability which has gotten worse over the years. It’s hard to be in a noisy group when you can only hear parts of the conversation. At most gatherings I am the one standing or sitting alone. I don’t care much for idle conversation. Now if there’s card games or board games to entertain me that makes a difference. Otherwise, I am usually the first out the door heading home.
I usually feel out of place in groups of people who are dressed well. I really have no fashion sense. This is everywhere I go with others. Weddings, funerals, dinners, whatever, I always feel like I have the wrong clothes on. I compare myself to how others are dressed and I generally feel inadequate.
I feel that I am getting better at social situations. Or maybe I am just finding more excuses not to be involved in those situations where I feel so out of place.
This is a true story. The story of the dead woman in the bathroom. Two of the ladies who were there told it to me. Years later all but one of these women have passed on.
In our small town, just about everyone knew each other. They worked together, went to church together, or had some social events they were involved in. This led to close friendships for these four women, Gertie, Maggie, Ginny, and Martha. All of them were retired. Their friendship included afternoons of getting together and playing cards. All of them had been married, raised children, and assisted each other when they lost their husbands.
Martha was a retired elementary school teacher, greatly loved by her former students and the community. She was in her seventies but continued to be very active and healthy. She still continued donating a lot of her time to church activities and helped any children with schoolwork difficulties. She had recently started a part-time job in a small restaurant. This helped fill her time after her husband’s death.
Maggie had worked as a secretary and clerk until retirement. She was the one who was full of laughs and told some off color jokes in private. She usually kept the card group laughing at some of her stories she liked to tell. She also was still active in church and community activities.
Ginny was the quiet serious one. But like Maggie she had a few good stories of her own. She had worked for the local doctor for years and still occasionally filled in when he needed her. She was the oldest member of the ladies card club, but still stayed busy with various activities.
Gertrude (Gertie) was a combination of all the ladies. She had been quite popular with the gentlemen in her youth and she had some wild tales of her own. Gertie had been a nurse at the nearby hospital. After retiring she had worked as a private nurse in some of the wealthiest homes in the surrounding area. When anyone really needed her help she would still step up and help.
One day in early September the four friends gathered in Martha’s spacious dining room. The house smelled of freshly baked bread, and cookies. Moreover, each of the other three women had brought food and snacks for lunch. The smells gave the promise of an awesome lunch. Good food was as important as friendship, gossip and card games.
The four women quickly settled in the dining room. They began playing cards. They laughed and caught up with the latest news and gossip around town. There wasn’t much news or gossip and the conversation lagged as each lady focused on winning the card game. After the first game had been completed they took a break.
Maggie announced that she was going to use the bathroom and disappeared down the hallway. The other three ladies continued chatting and shuffling the cards, getting ready for the next game. Ten minutes passed and still Maggie hadn’t returned from the bathroom. Gertie, Martha, and Ginny looked at each other and wondered what was keeping Maggie so long in the bathroom. They patiently waited another five minutes, then Martha was sent to check on Maggie. The others were getting anxious to start the new game.
Suddenly Martha came rushing back into the dining room. She said there was something wrong with Maggie in the bathroom. Maggie wasn’t responding when Martha attempted to wake her. Maggie was just sitting on the toilet with her head resting on her chest. They needed to call the doctor right away. Gertie, the nurse, promptly went to check on Maggie while Martha made the call to the doctor.
Several minutes later Gertie returned. The other three women were stunned and unbelieving as Gertie said that Maggie had died in the bathroom. Martha and Ginny were confused and frightened by the sudden death of their good friend, Maggie. They clung to each other, cried and grappled to understand how this happened. It just wasn’t possible they said, Maggie had just been sitting at the table with them. They found this too hard to be believable.
The doctor’s office was close by and he arrived within a short time. After a quick examination he confirmed Gertie”s verdict that Maggie was indeed dead. She had suffered a massive heart attack. The funeral director was called, who also lived a short distance away. He arrived and transported Maggie to the funeral home, leaving behind three very shocked and shaken card players.
This story sounds like it could have been an episode of (The Golden Girls). I assure you this is a true story.
Maggie’s death ended the card game that day for the women. It would be some time before any of them recovered from the shocking death of their friend. As they say, life does go on. In the small town where the four friends lived, life went on. However, not one of them ever forgot the day that a friend died in one of their bathrooms.
History Lovers Corner 