Libby seemed well enough to me, to be getting out of the hospital, but she said she didn't know where she was going to live because she would not be going back to live with her parents. I didn't tell her what had happened, or about her parents. But I got her flowers, and more.
You might have noticed that we’ve skipped over some things here, to protect the innocence perhaps? Get the Manley book and read the entire story. Here now is chapter 24. Well, parts of it. Happy reading.
Chapter Twenty-four: Vigil for my valentine
Valentine's Day February 14th. I picked up a bouquet of flowers and went to the hospital. I have been going there almost every day for over a week since I discovered that she was there. The pretty little receptionist know me by name now, and she seemed to be warming up to me somewhat too. “I would really like her to have these.” I said to her, “I think this would brighten up her day if nothing else.”
I was prepared to give it to her to get it to Libby but I had was to try first, peradventure she would let me go in and see her. Valentine's Day was my lucky day as it turned out, but it didn't come without a good deal of tests and trials, and the patience of a modern-day Job.
“Have a seat,” she said, “let me see if I can work something out for you.”
She got on the phone and dialed up, somebody. Who? Did you ask? How would I know who?
They talked for a minute or so then she hanged up and calls someone else, nothing. Then another, and another.
She must have called and talked to twenty, perhaps twenty-five persons. The minutes turned into hours... I was beginning to get hungrier by the minute, and then I overheard her telling someone: “he has been coming here every day for over a week now, begging for a chance to see her.”
That was rather generous of her I thought - I did miss out on a couple of days here and there.
I then watched as a couple of heads came popping out from behind a door jamb and pulling back a few times after they were done scrutinizing me for a brief moment.
I meanwhile, just sat there waiting, hoping and praying, until...
One lady came to the desk and sat down, next to the receptionist who by then was fast becoming my forever best friend, a life-saver she will forever be in my mind because of the way how things started unfolding since she took an active approach to help me.
The new lady appearing in the picture called me up to the window and started questioning me in the same way as if I was a would-be patient. And at other times, the questions took on an airy resemblance to those which the police was asking me about two weeks back.
She wanted to know my name, my occupation, home, and business addresses, what is the relationship between the patient and me, what living arrangements do I have or share with others, and the list goes on. However, deep inside of my guts I was beginning to get the feeling then that, I was being taken seriously, for once, and that I now stand a good chance of getting to see Libby, and that makes everything well worth it for me from then on.
The goodly lady then turn to me and said: “I am going to talk to the patient, to see how she feels about all of this, if she will see you, you are good to go but if not, I'm afraid, I can't allow you to go in, this will be all up to her, do you understand?”
“I… I totally understand and agree to that. That will be a lot more than I have been hoping for, for over a week now.”
“I'll be back,” she said, “have a seat in the waiting room.”
“Today is your lucky day,” said that lady upon her return twenty minutes or so later, “she will see you.”
Shuu! I exhaled, as I reached over and grabbed the bouquet and followed the goodly lady along the corridor which leads to the elevator, and up to the intensive care unit. Libby saw me on the approach, she sat up on the bed and stretch out both arms towards me as my steps hastened to get to her. We embraced, she - sitting up in the bed and leaning sideways towards me, kneeling there by the bedside and leaning in, she cried and sobbed for a while, of course, I didn't cry, but she did.
The lady, I still am not sure if she was a doctor, or a nurse, an orderly or whatever her role there was but for those few hours that our paths happened to cross, she was my angel of Mercy. Our angel of Mercy.
That’s it for today. See you again tomorrow.
Go get the Manley book and read the whole story.
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Extra, extra. On this day in history.
Wed. February 20
1998 - American Tara Lipinski, at age 15, became the youngest gold medalist in Winter Olympics history when she won the ladies' figure skating title at Nagano, Japan.
1952 - Emmett L. Ashford became the first black umpire in organized baseball. He was authorized to be a substitute in the Southwestern International League.
1921 - The motion picture "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" was released starring Rudolph Valentino.
1792 - U.S. President George Washington signed the Postal Service Act that created the U.S. Post Office.
Tues. February 19
2008 - Fidel Castro resigned the Cuban presidency. His brother Raul was later named as his successor.
1987 - A controversial, anti-smoking public service announcement aired for the first time on television. Yul Brynner filmed the ad shortly before dying of lung cancer. Brynner made it clear in the ad that he would have died from cigarette smoking before the ad aired.
1986 - The U.S. Senate approved a treaty outlawing genocide. The pact had been submitted 37 years earlier for ratification.
1985 - Mickey Mouse was welcomed to China as part of the 30th anniversary of Disneyland. The touring mouse played 30 cities in 30 days.
1878 - Thomas Alva Edison patented a music player (the phonograph).
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