"winter is coming" (chapter 6: 'roberta's reproaching'. a minnesota story)
[March 19, 1990] Roberta, who had already been reproaching herself for the unpleasantness of her recent feelings—was making much out of the little things, she was the recipient you could say of two heartaches, tense with hysterical thoughts now, and she ignored the everyday little things with her family. Somehow she seemed to have become brittle; it was now thirty-nine days or so, since Ezra died. She was hoping to find some kind of relief. Her eye happened to spot Donald working in the yard, shoveling her sidewalk.
All the holidays were over, the present-giving also. Her family was a little neglected, a little put about. They were perhaps patient with her, but seldom did she require this kind of patience, perhaps this was the only time in her life she need it from her family.
To find her isolated in her own house was kind of a surprise to her, Donald looked from the outside in, through the living room window, a casual grin, she read his lips, his movement of his mouth, “All right, it is all right.” She squeezed her fists, and walked away, up and down the stairs, this second death was more penetrating than the first. Perhaps she was scared. She produced some kind of a eupeptic chuckle. She was preoccupied; she took some medication to fill the empty space inside of her, to calm herself down. Whether she was aware of it or not, it is impossible to say, but Roberta was feeling sudden painful uneasiness; yet she could scarcely name this at the time, but Donald felt it too, he gave her a tolerant vague smile, “Perhaps you need to get some sleep,” he hesitated to say, but with a cheerful voice said it none the less, when he had come in after clearing the walkways around the house.
Roberta moved. With a long, hasty, graceful step, from the window to the sofa, she let her self drop a foot, she felt comfortable, smiled at her son, he looked both at her, as if he was grateful and relieved she was resting, it didn't occur to him, she was having a heart attack. Roberta thought so, but was unsure, she had never had one before that she knew of, it was curiously something new for her; then she started shaking, and Donald knew something was wrong. (He had been looking at a lovely winter picture of him and his mother that was over the sofa, on the wall; he was but twelve years old then.
Still looking at his mother, lightly, and scarcely unsure if all was well, he noticed she was no longer breathing, particularly, her chest was not moving. She had died (it was the last day of winter).
Characters:
Dr. Sammy H. Jeffers
Ezra L. Davis (PhD. Grad school Teacher)
Robert Brandt (Children: One boy (Donald), two sisters)
(Occupation, writer, Historian)
Donald Brandt
Notes: Chapters 1 & 2 written 5-11-2007; Chapter 3, written 5-12-2007; and Chapter 4, 5 & 6 written 5-13-2007, at home in Lima, Peru.
