| General Fiction posted June 9, 2017 | Chapters: |
...11 12 -14- 15... 
|
The women in the office
A chapter in the book The True Test
Helping heal
by jusylee72
Doug asked for another search party. "We need to take the far hall down to the office. We can go by the computer rooms. The only people who weren't in the auditorium when the shaking started is our office staff. We need to find out what has happened to them. I also heard from some of you that people saw Patty and Sherry leave during the vignettes. We need to find out if they are ok."
Several of the coaches went with him. The computer hallway was damaged and dangerous. None the less, the young men cautiously stepped through it. As they approached the office, the floor became unstable. To go further could cause another cave in. Nothing but rubble could be seen on the floor below them.
"Carolina. Anyone. Can you hear me? Are you okay?" The men spoke with loud clear voices. They couldn't get any closer. They would just have to hope they could make contact. "Carolina, where are you guys?" A head peeked out the side door of the teacher's lounge. It was Patty.
"There's nine of us in here. We can't get out to you yet. We may be able to go around the building out front and make our way around now that the rain has stopped. Are you all still in the auditorium?"
Doug was relieved to see her. "No, the auditorium is destroyed. We will try to send a group around to you and help you to join us. We are in the band hall. Do you have food and water."
"We are okay, some minor injuries but overall we are okay. We have a few supplies, at least enough for today. Tomorrow, we will try the front steps and see if we can climb around the rubble to where you are. It is getting too dark now. Try to come get us tomorrow in the morning."
"Sorry about missing our date, Patty. Something came up." Doug's attempt at humor made Patty laugh. The last two days had been both inspiring and lonely.
"We have all been worried about you guys," Patty yelled back at the group. "Let's make that date for tomorrow."
Patty went back in the lounge to lift everyone's spirits. The last two nights, these nine women became lifetime friends. The first night the violent rain storm frightened them. The lounge was connected to the copier room. If they sat out there they could see through the front windows. At times the lightning illuminated the entire area.
"God sure is mad at someone." Maria grew up in the Valley with her grandmother. "Grandma would say that whenever there was a big storm. She told us the scary stories she'd grown up with in Mexico. How El Diablo was riding the bolts of lightning and how thunder was God scolding disobedient children. It's a wonder I didn't grow up terrified of rain."
After several quick trips into what was left of the administrator's offices, they scavenged enough supplies for now. The principal's office had several flashlights. The VP had a private supply of coffee and creamer plus a hidden drawer of candy bars. Others had cushions and pillows. Carolina had the key to the soda and snack machines plus they still had some leftovers from the potluck lunch.
They missed their families and were worried about them. The inability to change anything at the moment helped them to cope with it. Sherry and Maria were sitting with Patty in the copy room. The others had decided to try to sleep through the storm.
Patty admired these older women. "Maria, why did you decide to be a secretary?" The innocents in the question touched Maria's, heart.
"I grew up on the poor side of town. I didn't feel poor. We always ate and our family was full of love. I went to the local high school. I was the president of the Spanish Honor Society and I made very good grades. Back then Patty, young Mexican women like me were expected to act a certain way. My senior year the counselor at the school called me in and told me she knew the best school for me. There was a popular secretary school within walking distance from our neighborhood. I never questioned why they didn't think I was college material. It was expected of me. It was many years before I realized I was just as smart and capable as the others who were sent to college. If I had to do it over, I would have studied to be a lawyer. Now I am approaching retirement age. I couldn't change my life but I encourage my children and grandchildren to be whatever they want to be."
"Do you resent the way they treated you now that you know what you could have been?" Patty, for all her 24 years, seemed incredibly vulnerable.
"Resentment has filled my mind attimesi. However, I married well. I lived and loved well. The little things get to me sometimes. For example; The teachers never have to clock out to eat lunch, and they have 48 minutes compared to our 30, yet if we don't remember to clock out and back in we are reprimanded. Often times, we are treated with disrespect by parents and sometimes by administrators, but there again if I dwell on that I might become a bitter old woman. How much fun would life be if I lived that way?"
Sherry listened to Maria as she talked to Patty. She knew she had developed a strong bond with this young lady in the short time they had been together. Sherry's depression lessened. This young lady indeed was a lovely soul.
It was almost one in the morning when the three women stopped talking.
A grown up slumber party made friendships deepen and new relationships develop in the dark of the night and the dawn of each day.
When Sherry woke up after she fainted. she didn't remember her outburst. The rest of the women decided to let it pass. Sherry continued to counsel Patty. The group of women encouraged her to talk about what had happened to her. They shared their own stories. Now she was willing to talk about the rape openly.
They had already talked about venturing out the next morning. Now they had renewed hope and knew where to search. They sat at the table and made plans.
Sherry noticed concern in Patty's eyes. "I really like Doug. We still don't know for sure that I am pregnant, but what if I am? I am sure he will reject me."
"We can only live the day we are given. Don't rush tomorrow. Work on who you are today. The rest will work itself out." Sherry was surprised that she could still give positive advice. Somehow she was changing.
Doug asked for another search party. "We need to take the far hall down to the office. We can go by the computer rooms. The only people who weren't in the auditorium when the shaking started is our office staff. We need to find out what has happened to them. I also heard from some of you that people saw Patty and Sherry leave during the vignettes. We need to find out if they are ok."
Several of the coaches went with him. The computer hallway was damaged and dangerous. None the less, the young men cautiously stepped through it. As they approached the office, the floor became unstable. To go further could cause another cave in. Nothing but rubble could be seen on the floor below them.
"Carolina. Anyone. Can you hear me? Are you okay?" The men spoke with loud clear voices. They couldn't get any closer. They would just have to hope they could make contact. "Carolina, where are you guys?" A head peeked out the side door of the teacher's lounge. It was Patty.
"There's nine of us in here. We can't get out to you yet. We may be able to go around the building out front and make our way around now that the rain has stopped. Are you all still in the auditorium?"
Doug was relieved to see her. "No, the auditorium is destroyed. We will try to send a group around to you and help you to join us. We are in the band hall. Do you have food and water."
"We are okay, some minor injuries but overall we are okay. We have a few supplies, at least enough for today. Tomorrow, we will try the front steps and see if we can climb around the rubble to where you are. It is getting too dark now. Try to come get us tomorrow in the morning."
"Sorry about missing our date, Patty. Something came up." Doug's attempt at humor made Patty laugh. The last two days had been both inspiring and lonely.
"We have all been worried about you guys," Patty yelled back at the group. "Let's make that date for tomorrow."
Patty went back in the lounge to lift everyone's spirits. The last two nights, these nine women became lifetime friends. The first night the violent rain storm frightened them. The lounge was connected to the copier room. If they sat out there they could see through the front windows. At times the lightning illuminated the entire area.
"God sure is mad at someone." Maria grew up in the Valley with her grandmother. "Grandma would say that whenever there was a big storm. She told us the scary stories she'd grown up with in Mexico. How El Diablo was riding the bolts of lightning and how thunder was God scolding disobedient children. It's a wonder I didn't grow up terrified of rain."
After several quick trips into what was left of the administrator's offices, they scavenged enough supplies for now. The principal's office had several flashlights. The VP had a private supply of coffee and creamer plus a hidden drawer of candy bars. Others had cushions and pillows. Carolina had the key to the soda and snack machines plus they still had some leftovers from the potluck lunch.
They missed their families and were worried about them. The inability to change anything at the moment helped them to cope with it. Sherry and Maria were sitting with Patty in the copy room. The others had decided to try to sleep through the storm.
Patty admired these older women. "Maria, why did you decide to be a secretary?" The innocents in the question touched Maria's, heart.
"I grew up on the poor side of town. I didn't feel poor. We always ate and our family was full of love. I went to the local high school. I was the president of the Spanish Honor Society and I made very good grades. Back then Patty, young Mexican women like me were expected to act a certain way. My senior year the counselor at the school called me in and told me she knew the best school for me. There was a popular secretary school within walking distance from our neighborhood. I never questioned why they didn't think I was college material. It was expected of me. It was many years before I realized I was just as smart and capable as the others who were sent to college. If I had to do it over, I would have studied to be a lawyer. Now I am approaching retirement age. I couldn't change my life but I encourage my children and grandchildren to be whatever they want to be."
"Do you resent the way they treated you now that you know what you could have been?" Patty, for all her 24 years, seemed incredibly vulnerable.
"Resentment has filled my mind attimesi. However, I married well. I lived and loved well. The little things get to me sometimes. For example; The teachers never have to clock out to eat lunch, and they have 48 minutes compared to our 30, yet if we don't remember to clock out and back in we are reprimanded. Often times, we are treated with disrespect by parents and sometimes by administrators, but there again if I dwell on that I might become a bitter old woman. How much fun would life be if I lived that way?"
Sherry listened to Maria as she talked to Patty. She knew she had developed a strong bond with this young lady in the short time they had been together. Sherry's depression lessened. This young lady indeed was a lovely soul.
It was almost one in the morning when the three women stopped talking.
A grown up slumber party made friendships deepen and new relationships develop in the dark of the night and the dawn of each day.
When Sherry woke up after she fainted. she didn't remember her outburst. The rest of the women decided to let it pass. Sherry continued to counsel Patty. The group of women encouraged her to talk about what had happened to her. They shared their own stories. Now she was willing to talk about the rape openly.
They had already talked about venturing out the next morning. Now they had renewed hope and knew where to search. They sat at the table and made plans.
Sherry noticed concern in Patty's eyes. "I really like Doug. We still don't know for sure that I am pregnant, but what if I am? I am sure he will reject me."
"We can only live the day we are given. Don't rush tomorrow. Work on who you are today. The rest will work itself out." Sherry was surprised that she could still give positive advice. Somehow she was changing.
Several of the coaches went with him. The computer hallway was damaged and dangerous. None the less, the young men cautiously stepped through it. As they approached the office, the floor became unstable. To go further could cause another cave in. Nothing but rubble could be seen on the floor below them.
"Carolina. Anyone. Can you hear me? Are you okay?" The men spoke with loud clear voices. They couldn't get any closer. They would just have to hope they could make contact. "Carolina, where are you guys?" A head peeked out the side door of the teacher's lounge. It was Patty.
"There's nine of us in here. We can't get out to you yet. We may be able to go around the building out front and make our way around now that the rain has stopped. Are you all still in the auditorium?"
Doug was relieved to see her. "No, the auditorium is destroyed. We will try to send a group around to you and help you to join us. We are in the band hall. Do you have food and water."
"We are okay, some minor injuries but overall we are okay. We have a few supplies, at least enough for today. Tomorrow, we will try the front steps and see if we can climb around the rubble to where you are. It is getting too dark now. Try to come get us tomorrow in the morning."
"Sorry about missing our date, Patty. Something came up." Doug's attempt at humor made Patty laugh. The last two days had been both inspiring and lonely.
"We have all been worried about you guys," Patty yelled back at the group. "Let's make that date for tomorrow."
Patty went back in the lounge to lift everyone's spirits. The last two nights, these nine women became lifetime friends. The first night the violent rain storm frightened them. The lounge was connected to the copier room. If they sat out there they could see through the front windows. At times the lightning illuminated the entire area.
"God sure is mad at someone." Maria grew up in the Valley with her grandmother. "Grandma would say that whenever there was a big storm. She told us the scary stories she'd grown up with in Mexico. How El Diablo was riding the bolts of lightning and how thunder was God scolding disobedient children. It's a wonder I didn't grow up terrified of rain."
After several quick trips into what was left of the administrator's offices, they scavenged enough supplies for now. The principal's office had several flashlights. The VP had a private supply of coffee and creamer plus a hidden drawer of candy bars. Others had cushions and pillows. Carolina had the key to the soda and snack machines plus they still had some leftovers from the potluck lunch.
They missed their families and were worried about them. The inability to change anything at the moment helped them to cope with it. Sherry and Maria were sitting with Patty in the copy room. The others had decided to try to sleep through the storm.
Patty admired these older women. "Maria, why did you decide to be a secretary?" The innocents in the question touched Maria's, heart.
"I grew up on the poor side of town. I didn't feel poor. We always ate and our family was full of love. I went to the local high school. I was the president of the Spanish Honor Society and I made very good grades. Back then Patty, young Mexican women like me were expected to act a certain way. My senior year the counselor at the school called me in and told me she knew the best school for me. There was a popular secretary school within walking distance from our neighborhood. I never questioned why they didn't think I was college material. It was expected of me. It was many years before I realized I was just as smart and capable as the others who were sent to college. If I had to do it over, I would have studied to be a lawyer. Now I am approaching retirement age. I couldn't change my life but I encourage my children and grandchildren to be whatever they want to be."
"Do you resent the way they treated you now that you know what you could have been?" Patty, for all her 24 years, seemed incredibly vulnerable.
"Resentment has filled my mind attimesi. However, I married well. I lived and loved well. The little things get to me sometimes. For example; The teachers never have to clock out to eat lunch, and they have 48 minutes compared to our 30, yet if we don't remember to clock out and back in we are reprimanded. Often times, we are treated with disrespect by parents and sometimes by administrators, but there again if I dwell on that I might become a bitter old woman. How much fun would life be if I lived that way?"
Sherry listened to Maria as she talked to Patty. She knew she had developed a strong bond with this young lady in the short time they had been together. Sherry's depression lessened. This young lady indeed was a lovely soul.
It was almost one in the morning when the three women stopped talking.
A grown up slumber party made friendships deepen and new relationships develop in the dark of the night and the dawn of each day.
When Sherry woke up after she fainted. she didn't remember her outburst. The rest of the women decided to let it pass. Sherry continued to counsel Patty. The group of women encouraged her to talk about what had happened to her. They shared their own stories. Now she was willing to talk about the rape openly.
They had already talked about venturing out the next morning. Now they had renewed hope and knew where to search. They sat at the table and made plans.
Sherry noticed concern in Patty's eyes. "I really like Doug. We still don't know for sure that I am pregnant, but what if I am? I am sure he will reject me."
"We can only live the day we are given. Don't rush tomorrow. Work on who you are today. The rest will work itself out." Sherry was surprised that she could still give positive advice. Somehow she was changing.
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