Winter Season

Locked up

Esther was comin’ over to help Oscar clean in the basement. He had bought a box of masks so the dust wouldn’t kill her. The plan was to bring stuff out of the basement into the garage, sort it into trash verses stuff they might could sell. His aunt and uncle had been gone for years now, it was time.

There was a small door in the basement that he had never opened. Karen made sure he had the keys. There was one for this random door and the attic. He dropped the keys in the floor. To his amazement, they slid under the bed. Great, he thought as he got down on his hands and knees to fish the keys out.

Keys in hand; as well as a big ball of dust, when Oscar tried to get up, he couldn’t. His back was locked. He couldn’t move. It didn’t hurt. But he couldn’t move. Thank God the door bell rang. He heard the key turn in the lock.

“O?”

“Bedroom,” he called to her.

“My dear, what are you doin’?”

“Ess, I can’t move.”

She knelt with him, running her hand down his back. “Can you wiggle your fingers?”

He did so, “yes.”

“How about your toes?”

“Yes.”

“Let’s roll you onto your side. Tell me if I hurt you.” This didn’t hurt. But he was terrified nonetheless. “Are you okay?”

His voice cracked, “for what it’s worth.”

She had one hand on his left thigh, the other on his calf, “flex your muscles.” As much as he wanted to have her hands all over him, this wasn’t it. He tried. “I could feel that. Keep trying to move something.”

He kept wiggling his toes and fingers. “My left leg is goin’ numb.”

“What does it feel like?”

“Ants crawlin’ down my skin.”

He kept trying to work his muscles. It must have taken a good half an hour to get his arms and legs flat on the floor. Another half an hour to raise them up again. He was able to roll over on his other side. Esther held her hands out for him as he rose to his knees. Love his heart, he looked like a duck on ice trying to stand up. She was right there for support.

Once he was on his feet, she suggested, “shake your arms and legs.” He did. “How does that feel?”

“It tingles.”

“Can you lift your legs to your chest? Slowly,” she encouraged. As he lifted his left leg, he closed his eyes, pursing his lips. “Does that hurt?”

“No but I can feel it pull in my lower back.”

As he put all of his weight on his left leg, to raise his right knee, he stumbled but she was right there for him. “Let’s walk.”

They walked around the house a few times before he felt he was back to normal.

Winter Season