From Riches to Rags

by Mairsile Leabhair

  As we watched them walk away, Chris turned to me and quipped, “So, now I’m filthy rich and you’re dirt poor. Kind of funny how things turned out, isn’t it?”

  “Yuk it up, funny girl. You only have a few days to enjoy it before I’m back to being my old rich self again.”

  She looked at the money she held in her hand, “And that’s when the real test begins, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  Christmas Surprises — Chris Livingston and Melinda Blackstone

  By Christmas Eve, when Melinda and I finally got off work, we were beyond exhausted. The restaurant closed early and would not reopen until the day after Christmas, so we decided to swing by the hospital and check on Norma and then go home for the night. I used some of the money daddy gave me to take a taxi back and forth to work, the hospital or the apartment. That would allow time for us to shower and feed the two kittens, Blackie and Pluto, who we usually found snuggled together on the bed, sleeping peacefully. I envy a kitten’s life. But Melinda refused to use the money, stating that she was on to me, and she would not give in. I had to applaud her determination.

  Norma was still in a coma, but her pneumonia was improving and the doctor was hopeful that she would recover. His concern was that she wasn’t coming out of the coma and he seemed to think it was more emotional now than physical. When we asked him how we could help, he told us that talking to her as if she were awake has been known to help coma patients wake up. But he cautioned us that Norma had to want to wake up, for that to work. It took me a minute to understand what he was saying, and when I did, it broke my heart.

  Christmas Eve was bitter cold, and the four of us huddled under a blanket tent to conserve heat. I never had so much fun in my life. The kitten’s entertained us with their playfulness, and Melinda and I talked about Christmas’ past. She told me what a brat she had been if she didn’t get the presents she had asked for, and she always asked for a lot. I could just imagine the kind of tantrum’s she must have had as a child, but she told me that she had them as an adult too. We drifted off to sleep soon after that. For the first time in a long while, I slept soundly, even as the kittens continued to play under the sheets.

  Christmas day! As a child, Christmas at the Livingston house was always magical and full of wonder. Even before we were rich, we always had a huge tree with lots of presents underneath it. On Christmas Eve, we’d go caroling in the neighborhood and then open one gift. On Christmas day, I’d jump on my parent’s bed to wake them up so I could open my presents. And after the presents were open and the wrapping paper strewn about, we’d get dressed and go to church to wish Jesus a happy birthday. It was our custom that I leave one toy at the altar for baby Jesus, which of course was actually given to the homeless kids. It wasn’t until I was ten or eleven that I understood what a homeless kid was. I believe that my birthday present to the baby Jesus was the beginning of my desire to pay it forward by giving it back.

  I woke before Melinda, and eased out of bed so as not to wake her. Wrapping my blanket around my shoulders, I fed the kittens and set the coffee to percolating. I noticed that there were some new presents under the tree. One of them was small, about the size of a deck of cards, which made me laugh at the memory of Melinda cheating at cards, but then she was such a lousy card player that it didn’t matter anyway. The other present was bigger, and wrapped much nicer than the rest of our presents. My gift for Melinda was wrapped in the Sunday funnies and tied with yarn, but I still thought it looked Christmassy.

  I looked at Melinda’s hand drawn calendar on the wall and at first I was excited, because I had almost everything I had asked for, but then I was glum because those X’s marking off each day meant that soon, Melinda would leave. I remembered what she said, I’m back to being my old rich self again, and I flinched. What will happen to her now? What will happen between us now? I glanced over at her, sleeping contentedly. She had one bare leg protruding out from under the blanket, and I walked over to her with the intention of covering her up so she wouldn’t get cold, but I ran my fingers across her soft skin instead. If I had the power, I would never let the clock strike midnight again so that we could stay like this always. I smiled at the thought until reality returned. What if she didn’t want to stay cold and hungry and poor for the rest of her life? What if she didn’t want to stay with me at all? I realized that I wasn’t being fair to her by asking questions that she wasn’t awake to answer, so I covered her leg and walked back over to the hot plate to check on the coffee. After thirty minutes of drinking my coffee and playing with the kittens, I decided it was time for Melinda to wake up, so I sat the coffee cup down, and with a child’s grin, ear to ear, I jumped up on the bed and started dancing.

  “Wake up! Wake up! Its Christmas morning! Come on, it’s time to open the presents!”

  I probably should have thought that through a little more and remembered that Melinda was not a morning person. After a few expletives that were not very Christmassy, she finally woke up.

  “What time is it?” she asked as she stretched the kinks out of her back.

  “It’s almost six A.M.”

  “Huh? Too damn early, wake me in four hours.” She said and snuggled back down under the covers.

  “Oh no you don’t. It’s Christmas and I want to open presents.” I slung back her blanket and yanked back the sheet, watching as the cold air raised goose bumps are her arms.

  “You are such a brat.” She said with a laugh.

  “I’ll stop being a brat when you get your pretty little butt out of bed.”

  She stopped laughing and looked at me, “You think my butt is pretty?”

  “What?” I was stalling to give myself time to think, and I came back with such a lame remark that it almost made me gag, “I wouldn’t know, I haven’t seen your butt.”

  “Au contraire, mon ami. I believe that there was a full moon in this very apartment not too long ago.”

  “Ew, please, don’t remind me,” I said and then quickly turned away before she saw the delight on my face, “Come on, let’s open our presents, then get down to the hospital.”

  She jumped out of bed excited as a child, but when her bare feet hit the ice cold floor, she changed her mind and jumped back in bed.

  “See, you should have put on some socks first.” I wore socks to bed in the winter, but Melinda never has.

  “How about we open the presents in bed where it’s nice and warm?”

  Actually I thought that was a good idea so I gathered them all up and piled them on the bed, then I crawled back in and pulled up the blanket.

  “Who should go first?” I asked, not that we had a lot of gifts to open.

  “I think Blackie should go first.”

  “Blackie, as in the kitten, right?”

  “Yeah, who did you think?”

  I smiled at her, and held out the round, rattling present to Blackie, who only sniffed at it and then continued licking herself. I had gotten her a little toy that had a plastic ball inside a plastic ball so that when she rolled it around, it made a racket. I unwrapped the toy and tossed it at her, but Pluto pounced on it first and sent it flying across the room. Soon both kittens were chasing the ball around the room and we laughed at their antics.

  Melinda picked up the gift with the beautiful wrapping and handed it to me. “This is from George and he said it was to both of us.”

  “Don’t you want to open it?”

  “Nah, you go ahead and rip that paper off. I’ll just sit back and watch.”

  I’m not sure where my mind went at that moment, but it sure wasn’t thinking about opening Christmas gifts.

  “Are you going to open it?”

  “What, yeah, of course.” I carefully unwrapped the paper, thinking I would save it to use later, and pulled out a framed photograph of Melinda and I at the restaurant. “I love it!” I exclaimed, holding it at arm’s length so Melinda could see it.

  “Hey, it turned out pretty good even if I am in it.”


  “Let’s hang it on the wall above the calendar.” I got up to do just that but Melinda laughed and reminded me that it was too early in the morning to be pounding on the wall and waking up the neighbors.

  “They might think we’re having some wild sex in here,” She said with a lustful drool.

  “You’re right, we wouldn’t want that, now would we?” Yes!

  “Who’s that gift from?” Melinda pointed at the door.

  “Where did that come from?” There was a flat box, about the same size that the framed picture was in, lying on the floor next to the door, as if someone had slid it underneath the door.

  Melinda looked at me, waiting for me to get out from under my nice warm blanket and go pick it up. I rolled my eyes at her and she laughed.

  “Well. you’re the one wearing socks,” she smirked.

  “Well. guess what you’re getting for Christmas next year,” I joked back and got out of bed. “There’s a card on it,” I brought the box back to Melinda and while she opened it, I read the card aloud.

  “Sorry we couldn’t stay and visit today but we’re on our way to Frankie’s parents for Christmas. Behave yourselves and have a Merry Christmas. Love, Meg and Frankie”

  “That was really nice of them,” Melinda said as she pulled out something wrapped in tissue paper with her name across it. She tore the tape off and a small card fell out. It read, To keep that ego of yours from flying away. Melinda rolled her eyes as she pulled out a dream catcher from the tissue paper. “Oh yeah, real funny, ha-ha.”

  “I think it’s hysterical.”

  “It would be kind of funny. if it weren’t so annoying. So what did she give you?”

  I picked up the tissue paper with my name on it and unwrapped it, and peeking inside, instantly I was in tears.

  “What’s the matter, did she give you a dream catcher too?”

  I showed Melinda the montage of photos with Bonnie and me as children, and a few of the pictures even had Meg in them. The words always in my heart encircled the frame. There was no card with my gift, but then there didn’t need to be one. Meg had already said it all.

  “You know, that woman makes it so damn hard to hate her sometimes.”

  “I’m so glad because I really hope you two can be friends.”

  At first I thought Melinda was going to say something, but she changed her mind.

  We had just two more presents to unwrap, and I couldn’t wait to see what Melinda made for me. We promised to make our gifts in order to save money. I had a particularly hard time coming up with an idea for her because she’s was just here temporarily and anything I could make would be lame in comparison to what she would be going home to.

  Just as we handed each other the gifts, the phone that Meg had given me rang. It was the hospital. They said to come right away and then we were cut off. I had forgotten to charge the battery on the phone, didn’t even think about it to tell the truth. I panicked but Melinda thankfully kept her wits about her and called for a taxi.

  “Let’s think positively, they’re calling to tell us she’s awake and asking for us.”

  “Okay, that’s sounds good, keep talking.”

  She added, “And we should take our gifts and celebrate Christmas at the hospital with Norma.”

  “Good idea.” I rushed to the bathroom to be the first to use the hot water in the shower and smiled when I heard Melinda’s disproving grumble.

  “You know I have half a mind to join you,” she shouted after me.

  I stuck my head out the door and said, “Then use the other half of your mind because you’re not getting in here.” Not yet anyway.

  A Sterile Christmas — Melinda Blackstone and Chris Livingston

  We rushed over to the ICU nurses station and spoke to a nurse wearing antler’s and Santa Claus scrubs. I didn’t recognize her, but then with it being Christmas they probably switched shifts.

  Chris said, “Someone called us about Norma Shelby?”

  “Mrs. Shelby?” The nurse looked down at the computer, “Yes, oh but it says she has no family here, I’m sorry, I can’t give you any information.”

  “What? We’ve been here night and day since she was admitted and they’ve always let us in, come on, have a heart.”

  I was about to lose my temper but Chris intervened.

  “Please, we’re all she’s got right now.” Chris was sobbing, “Don’t let her die alone, please.”

  The nurse had apparently did have a heart, or she forgot those damn rules, because she said, “She’s not dying, she’s coming out of the coma.”

  “Thank God!”

  “But she’s not awake yet.” The nurse stated.

  I was confused, “I don’t understand, if she’s coming out of the coma then why isn’t she awake yet?”

  “Patients don’t always wake up immediately, she could wake up at any minute, or she could linger for days.”

  “Please, can’t we see her; we only want to help her.” Chris pleaded.

  “You might be able to at that.” The nurse said, and nodded toward Norma’s room.

  We walked in carrying our plastic sack full of gifts and went straight to Norma’s bed, careful not to interfere with the tubes and machines feeding antibiotics into her veins.

  “She looks better today.” Chris said, “Don’t you think she looks better?”

  “Yes, I think you’re right, she is looking better.” Truthfully I didn’t see a difference but if Chris wanted to believe it then I would too.

  “Norma, its Chris and Melinda. We’ve brought presents for you, but you’re going to have to wake up first.”

  Chris looked at me with a poignant smile, “Try flirting with her, Melinda, she loves that.”

  I laughed, “Okay, it can’t hurt.” I leaned in close to Norma’s ear and said softly, “I’m still waiting to see those knockers of yours.”

  We waited, holding our breath that she heard me and would wake up, but she didn’t.

  “The nurse said it might take some time, so let’s just let her rest and we’ll try again in a few minutes. Want to exchange presents while we wait?”

  “Sure, where’s the bag?”

  I handed her the bag and she pulled out three gifts, setting Norma’s gift on the night stand. Then she handed me her gift wrapped in cartoon newspaper. Even her wrapping paper is cute.

  “You go first,” she said.

  I tore into it and absentmindedly tossed the paper on the bed by Norma’s feet. Chris picked it up for me. Inside the small box was an old key with one tooth. I couldn’t imagine what that would go to, but I found myself hoping it was her heart. I held it up and looked at her.

  “It’s the key to the bathroom. I know it’s a moot point now, but you still have a few hours left to use it.”

  I laughed and teased her, “Sure, now you give it to me.” I picked up my gift to her and said as I handed it to her, “Now, it’s not much, because, you know, I’m poor.”

  She smiled and opened my poorly wrapped gift, and I watched her eyes as she read the placard, “I. O. U.?”

  I nodded and indicated that she should flip it over and when she read it, I thought she was going to cry.

  “Everything. I owe you everything.” She read aloud, “No, Melinda, I owe you for showing me that there is hope.”

  “I hope that you’re right because I’ve got this queasy feeling that I’m going to crash and burn.”

  “It’s called being afraid, and it’s a good thing, it’ll keep you on your toes. You won’t crash because you are the bravest woman I know. You’ve done everything you set out to do, and you did it with your head held high. No one can fault you for that, not even you.”

  I thought about what she was saying to me and I could literally feel the fear being replaced with pride, a pride I’ve never felt in myself before. She was right; it’s up to me what I do now. I know I don’t want to go back to Vegas. I know I don’t want to throw money away any more, not when I can do some actual good with it. I had some decisio
ns to make, and quickly, because time was running out. “I’m going to get some coffee, do you want anything?’

  Chris shook her head but then changed her mind. “I’d love some orange juice. There’s money in my purse, if you need some?”

  “Nah, I got it covered.”

  “Hurry back, okay?”

  She was afraid I would miss Norma waking up and she was right, I did want to be here when she woke up. I’ve got so much I want to tell her, so much to share with her.

  I thought about it as I bounded down the stairs towards the cafeteria. Norma doesn’t know that her suggestion to have me oversee the displaced residents move was a brilliant one. My father even liked it. She doesn’t know how much I’m going to need her help, because I’ve never done anything like that before. She doesn’t know that I need her, just because she’s my friend. I thought about how many times I had the opportunity to tell her how much she meant to me, and I never took it. Death is so final and if I get a second chance, I’m going to make sure those that I love know it. Suddenly, I stopped in the stairwell and counted on one hand, the people I love. I felt completely alone.

  “What a waste.” I said out loud and listened to it echo up the stairwell. And like the scrooge who saw his future and was afraid, I shivered at the vision of my own future. I exited the stairs and walked toward the cafeteria, but suddenly, I turned back and ran up the stairs again, two at a time. I had to talk to Chris.

  *

  “Norma, I wish you would wake up and give me some advice. It’s almost time for Melinda and I to finish our challenge and she will probably not want to stay in Memphis afterwards. If anything I wouldn’t be surprised if she moved to San Francisco where she was happiest. She’s really changed though, Norma, and you’d be so proud of her. She hasn’t even craved a drink since she moved in, and she worked her ass off at the restaurant and even when she was fired, she swallowed her pride and went back. She’s become the person I knew she could be.”

  Suddenly Melinda burst through the door with a wild look in her eyes. “What’s wrong, Melinda?”