Win in the End by Martin L. Shoemaker

Author:Martin L. Shoemaker
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: A Charity Anthology
Publisher: Knight Writing Press
Published: 2025-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

But I find Luke to be optimistic. While many of the residents of the memory facility accept me as a caretaker, Mrs. Carruthers has countless objections.

“Your hands are cold.”

“You try to look human, but I’m not fooled.”

“Who asked you?”

“I don’t like metal men!”

Soon Nurse Rayburn and I agree: I must not try to assist Mrs. Carruthers. She is not “coming around,” as Luke predicted. She is intransigent. Digging in her heels, as Luke put it. The more I try to assist her, the more stubbornly she refuses. Sometimes the stress risks her health, and I cannot allow that.

So I work with the others: Auralie, Jimmy, Aaron, Heather, certainly Luke, and the rest. I bring food trays to those who are not ambulatory. I participate in games and discussions, and I clean up messes. I am legally too outmoded to provide medical services. I am not even supposed to touch the residents (though Nurse Rayburn soon chooses to overlook that restriction). But I am allowed to do a wide range of assistive tasks as well as recreation.

Luke and I even work on our juggling act. He tells me that I might be competent if I keep at it. He is amused by this thought.

And I continue to join them for lunches. It is an opportunity to observe Mrs. Carruthers in a larger social group, where she is less likely to focus on me. I find that Luke was correct in his assessment: she does not seem to like anyone. She is not aggressive toward anyone, but she shows her displeasure. Sniffs and frowns and glowers.

But sometimes I catch her smiling at stories that people tell, usually about children. That makes me curious. Does she have any children? I am not certified to access her medical records; but I still have my library card, and my wireless connection to the Internet. And no one researches like an android researches.

It takes me a while to collate data in order to build a profile of Mrs. Helen Carruthers, age 67, of Wayland, Michigan. A widow, having lost her husband Kent nearly a decade ago. Mother of two, grandmother of seven, none of whom have come to visit in the time that I have known her. I feel bad for her while also understanding. The tragedy of a memory health care facility, of long-term care homes in general, is that there are so few visitors. I observe this pattern daily. When someone is a new resident of the facility, family members are there day and night, standing a vigil with their loved ones. Sometimes hopeful, often doubtful, but attentive.

But then, as time passes, the visits become less frequent. I know that this causes bitterness and judgment, and I understand the feelings. But I understand both sides. You can spend long hours with a loved one for six days, or six weeks. Six months begins to wear. In six years… No one can put their life on hold for that long.

I do not have access to Mrs.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.