It was Saturday lunchtime. The hot summer sun beat down on the faces of the families in the stands during the last Little League game of the season. Moms, finding comfort in the familiar faces of friends forged through three months of uncomfortable green bleachers, bee stings and sunburns, chatted casually about the back-to-school sales for the upcoming year. A handful of men, still intently focused on the games, paced by the backstop, shouting advice to their progeny, perhaps envisioning a MLB baseball legacy. Sticky younger siblings, covered in cotton-candy, played tag beneath the bleachers, oblivious to both the parents and the ball game.
The blacktop of the adjacent street steamed in the heat, almost beckoning a mirage to appear in place of the nursing home that sat on the corner – a small, one-story brick building that despite its beautiful flowers teeming with butterflies and hummingbirds seemed devoid of life. A lone car sat in the parking lot – a blue Toyota minivan which belonged to the family who had just entered the building: two energetic boys who looked longingly at the little league game, an overly-dressed …show more content…
The boys suddenly sprinted as they finally spied Millie in the corner, tilted back in her hot rod wheelchair they had decorated for her. It suited her feisty personality. Although her health was failing and she hadn’t remembered anyone in years, Millie always brightened at the idea of visitors. Her heart knew no strangers. Millie radiated her own sunlight – a bright, contagious beam that beckoned to return callers and newcomers alike. But not today. Last week she had lost her sight. Yesterday her neck muscles gave way and the nurses were obliged to restrain her in the wheelchair. Today she sat trancelike, her left-eye seeping, her skeletal body unusually
The blacktop of the adjacent street steamed in the heat, almost beckoning a mirage to appear in place of the nursing home that sat on the corner – a small, one-story brick building that despite its beautiful flowers teeming with butterflies and hummingbirds seemed devoid of life. A lone car sat in the parking lot – a blue Toyota minivan which belonged to the family who had just entered the building: two energetic boys who looked longingly at the little league game, an overly-dressed …show more content…
The boys suddenly sprinted as they finally spied Millie in the corner, tilted back in her hot rod wheelchair they had decorated for her. It suited her feisty personality. Although her health was failing and she hadn’t remembered anyone in years, Millie always brightened at the idea of visitors. Her heart knew no strangers. Millie radiated her own sunlight – a bright, contagious beam that beckoned to return callers and newcomers alike. But not today. Last week she had lost her sight. Yesterday her neck muscles gave way and the nurses were obliged to restrain her in the wheelchair. Today she sat trancelike, her left-eye seeping, her skeletal body unusually