Sue towel-dried her hair and thought about the events of the day. Bruce had come in early to get his sores doctored before his shift as sous-chef. He had discovered his cooking talents when he was asked to fill in for a sick chef. He found an outlet for his creativity in cooking. Sue said to Bruce as she pulled the bandage off of his sore, “This one is looking so good that I think a simple band-aid will suffice on it now. Let’s check the others.” After looking at his other sores, Sue said, “Well, Bruce, you are now able to take care of the sores on your own. You don’t need my help anymore. I will miss our daily visits, but I am glad to see you so healthy!” Sue prepared a bag of ointment and band-aids and handed them to him.
Bruce said, “I will miss you too, but I sure won’t miss those nasty sores! It is such a relief not to itch anymore.” He whistled as he left the office.
Bruce was not gone a half hour when he had returned. Sue’s smile left when she saw Bruce was not alone and his friend had a towel wrapped around her hand with blood dripping from it. Sue rushed her into the other room while Bruce returned to the kitchen. Sue washed her off with first water and then with an anti-bacterial wash while Doctor Andes also washed up. She had prepared the Doctor’s tools and he had taken over the patient while Sue went back to the reception room.
As she pulled on her slacks, Sue thought of the flurry of activity she had experienced next. Roger Mandible hobbled in next with a sprained ankle. Sue was just finishing wrapping up his ankle, when Becca, a young mother, scurried in holding a writhing 5 year old. Sue ran to the mother and had her take the child into a room in the back where the doctor was. He immediately saw the child was having an epileptic fit and went into action, with Sue’s help. Sue took the mother into the reception room to both calm her down and to gather information. Becca grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes. Sue asked her the necessary details and then asked if the child had ever had a seizure before.
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Becca said, “Yes, she has and it is the scariest thing. I didn’t have health care and just had to handle it on my own. It is awfully nice to have a clinic on board the ship that we have access to.”
After Becca and her daughter left, there had been a gentleman with a cold and then her day in the clinic was over. Her replacement arrived promptly and Sue had gone back to her room to take a shower. She was going to get a swimming suit at the women’s shop on the ship. Sue thought about what kind of swimming suit she would purchase. She had never had children and her weight was under control, so she could get a bikini. But would she be comfortable in a bikini? She wanted to enjoy her time in the water and was not trying to attract anyone, so she decided on a one-piece with a skirt.
As Sue walked into the store, a lady walked up to her and said, “Hello Dahling, I am Karen McIlvoy. How may I help you?”
Sue thought, “Who is this? Does she think she is the missing Gabor sister?” Sue tried not to laugh, as she noticed the high blond hair-do and the prissy walk as Karen led her to the swimsuit area. Sue looked down the line of clothing and picked out several in her size to try on and then went toward the dressing room. As she changed, Sue thought that it was wrong for her to have judged Karen just by her appearance. After Sue had chosen a swim suit and paid for it, they struck up a conversation.
Sue asked Karen, “Were you homeless, too or are you being paid to be here?”
Karen said, “Yes, dahling, I was homeless for a number of years. I am 75 and have been homeless since I turned 70. I had a young boyfriend who got me hooked on drugs until I was in so deep that I lost my home, my car, my children and all respect of anyone I knew. I finally looked at myself and decided I wanted to live again and found a program that would help me go through rehab. I decided, once I went through the agony of withdrawal, that I never wanted to go through that again, so I am standing before you today, a clean person!”
Sue thought, “I really was wrong to judge her! She has been through a lot!” Then she went on to tell Karen her story. The two decided to meet for lunch sometime and exchanged numbers.