Zach Scott Final

George: Hey maam, you dropped something. MA'AM

Linda: Oh I'm sorry I didn't realize. I have just been really out of it lately. After losing my husband things just haven't been the same.

George: I know the feeling very well. I have just currently lost someone very prominent in my life too.

Linda: really?

George: ya, he wasn't one of the brightest men you would ever meet but he did have a big heart and he was the closest thing I had to a family.

Linda: Wow we sound like we are in about the same boat. There were many things I loved about my husband, but one thing that I did not really care for was the fact that as much love as I expressed towards him he did not always show the same back to me. There were points when I really wanted things to be easier but for some reason at the end he always seemed to make things harder.

George: Ya, I had the same problem. Lennie, the person that was basically a brother to me, had a mental disability. He was a great guy but he liked to pet things. Usually when he would pet things it would end up dying because he would pet too hard and would strangle them or crush them. At first it started with my aunt giving him mice. He loved the mice, but as I said before he always thought they were soft and would pet them to death. This was known by many people.

Linda: Wow that sounds like a lot of stress. My husband, Willy, put the same kind of stress on me. The only difference was that I had to worry about him killing himself, not other people. The most stressful thing was that many times I caught him with a little hose attached to the gas line. I wanted to say something but there was no way I could bring myself to confront him about it.

George: That does sound tough. I didn't know what to do with my friend, he ended up trying to pet one girl's dress and ripped it. Then the girl ended up accusing him of raping her. He basically lost me every job that I have ever gotten. I protected him from everything and in the end I get nothing for it. He felt like more of a burden to me than a help, but he was basically family and I will do anything for family.

Linda: I agree, I gave all my love to my husband but in return I did not get anything. He yelled at me when I tried to get into a conversation and did not return the same love I showed him. He started talking to himself and that basically took me out of the whole conversation.

George: Wow, both of us had to deal with people that were mentally challenged. It is not a task I would wish onto anyone. It is such a hard thing to deal with on a daily basis. I thought he was going to be alright on this farm because he could do so much more work than some of the guys that were smaller than him. He was doing so well and I thought we had finally found a home. I always had to make sure that he wasn't getting into trouble and that others weren't antagonizing him. He did not really know what he was doing and it was hard for him to deal with things.

Linda: Like?

George: As I said earlier he liked to pet things. I got him a dog after we were on the farm from a man that we were working with. He loved it and in the end he ended up killing it, just like the mice. There was nothing I could do to help him because I could not be by his side twenty-four seven. I tried to find him something that he could do by himself and not worry about him getting into trouble.

Linda: I see. The only thing that really kept Willy out of trouble was the fact that he was working. After he got fired he did not know what to do with his life and he in a way cracked. He was not the same after he had to stop working. He lied to me about being able to pay for things and he walked around in the dark talking to himself as if he were talking to our children when they were younger.

George: Work, that really is the only thing that keeps me going now. I am glad to have a steady job now and not worry about the fact that I need to watch someone other than myself.

Linda: We are living off of my husbands Life Insurance for now. The fact is though is that it may run out very soon and I don't have any idea on what we will do if that happens. My two son's are living with me for now until I can get back on my feet. They do not make all that much money though and we are already in debt to the neighbor from all of the borrowing that Willy had done.

George: That does put you in a tough spot. If you don't mind me asking, did your husband die of the gas poisoning or was it something different?

Linda: No actually that is a very valid question. The night he died I ran up to bed and I thought he was right behind me. He wasn't, he had gone out the front door and had ran to the car. By the time me or my kids realized he was pulling out of the driveway it was too late. Within half an hour or so we heard sirens coming towards the house and we all knew what happened. He was a dear father and husband, but I still do not understand why he took his own life on that night.

George: Wow, I am so sorry for your loss Ma'am

Linda: Please just call me Linda

George: I'm sorry Linda, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm George.

Linda: Well hi George. If you don't mind, I would like to ask you the same question. What happened to Lennie?

George: From what I have heard he was petting one of the girls on the farms dress and she told him that her hair was even softer than the dress was. So she lifted his hand to her head and he got to violent and started to freak out when she started yelling. That's when he picked her up by the hair and ended up shaking her too much and it snapped her neck. I had told Lennie where to go when he got into trouble so I figured that was where he was at when I heard the news. I knew by this point he was going to be killed by these people and there was nothing I could do to save him. So I decided that I should just do it myself so that it would be like a horse with a broken leg and just put him out of his misery. This way I knew that he went without being scared and could have been peaceful. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but I knew I did what was right.

Linda: Wow George. I think I am going to have to get going now. I have to talk to my boys about the jobs they have and are applying for.

George: Alright Goodbye Linda, I hope I didn't scare you away.

Linda: No it wasn't that. I just lost track of the time.

George: Ok, well maybe I will see you around. It was great talking with you. Bye Linda.

Linda: Ya I agree it was nice, talk to you later George.