What Have You Done, Martha?



Martha was an older woman who lived alone in the house she grew up in. She was the last living member of her family and she often caught herself "family" watching, (like people watching) but instead of watching people in a coffee shop or at the mall she would sit outside on her porch and watch the families around her neighborhood. Or on colder days Martha would watch from inside her living room at parents playing with their small children, or the older kids running about in adventures only their imaginations could create. Martha quite enjoyed getting lost in their adventures, attempting to create a world of her own for herself, where she could sit and drift off into a less lonely life.

Martha was once married, but lost her husband early in their marriage to cancer. They produced no children in the few short years that they were together. (They had both decided to wait until they were financially stable and mentally prepared.) Unfortunately time was against them. While her husband was sick in the hospital, the hospital basically became their second home. None the less, his battle was short; the cancer came and took him with it as fast as it had come. Another cancer patient they met in the hospital, Stanley had been there for awhile, in and out of remission, he had been through quite a lot himself. During Martha and her husbands stay in the hospital they became close. Stanley having been through the cancer treatment so many times he helped out Martha and her husband with many things.

Martha, her husband and Stanley had all become friends, they built a bright friendship out of a dark situation, and when Martha's husband passed, Stanley was there for Martha. Over the next few weeks after Martha's husband passed, Martha would go back to visit Stanley and keep him company. Unfortunately Stanley met his end shortly after Mr. Stadler's. The visits where Martha would visit Stanley, he opened up to Martha more than he had anyone else in his life. Stanley, like Martha, was also now alone. In those visits Martha learned a great deal about the pain that cancer caused, she wished that no one would ever have to go through something so horrible like both her husband and Stanley had.

While Martha would be on her porch she would occasionally talk to the children and their parents; she was a friendly woman, but never got too close to anyone. Always keeping her distance, never inviting anyone in; or accepting invitations herself. She didn't want to get too close to anyone, to have to hear about their pain, see it, and worst of all, not be able to help them.

One of Martha's favorite families to watch is the newly wed couple that just moved in across the street from her, and unlike Mr. Stadler and herself, they were planning on having a baby soon. So soon in fact that Darla, the young wife, was already expecting. Darla and Stewart were extremely friendly and the sweetest couple you could find. They went on daily afternoon walks, always holding hands, smiling; just happy in general, and they also always stopped to talk with Martha. Martha was quite fond of them; she enjoyed living vicariously through them and just always seeing them so happy made Martha feel warm on the inside. Martha wasn't a cold person, but a small part of her had grown cold and distant after losing Mr. Stadler and Stanley. Martha looked forward to the baby coming and seeing the couple everday. The three of them developed quite a nice relationship.

Once the baby came, not much changed; Darla and Stewart continued to take their afternoon walks, and have their chats with Marta. The only new (and very much welcomed) addition was their baby girl, Cally. She took after her Mother and Father 100 percent. She was always smiling, cooing at this and that, had big blue eyes and thin blonde hair that always had a colorful bow in it, making her look even happier. Darla and Stewart didn't go out much, about once a month, and would always ask Martha to babysit. At first Martha was hesitant but of course couldn't say no to Cally's big blue eyes and smile. Darla and Stewart thought of Martha as Cally's pseudo-Grandmother (both of Cally's actual Grandparents lived awhile away). Although Martha would never admit it, she thought of Cally as family, and grew very attached to Cally, and Cally grew attached to Martha.

Shortly after Cally's first birthday Martha noticed a drastic change in her neighbor's behavior. For a few days at a time they would miss their afternoon walk, and when they did go out they looked tired, as if they had been up all night, and only a few times did they bring Cally with them. Martha thought it was extremely strange, but wasn't one to pry into the lives of others, no matter how close and comfortable she felt, she waited for them to come to her. And a few weeks later they did. They explained to Martha that for the past few weeks Cally has been under the weather, and after regular doctor visits and medicine didn't help, they finally took her to the hospital. Cally was diagnosed with Leukemia. If Martha hadn't been sitting in her rocking chair she would have fallen to her knees, she could not believe, didn't want to believe what she had been told.

Darla and Stewart had started Cally on treatment but were keeping her at home, they had come to ask Martha for some help taking care of and watching Cally for a few weekends while they went to visit their parents to help sort things out. They didn't want to put Cally through the hassle of picking up and moving while she was so sick, and the couple wanted to go together to visit their parents, but they wanted to make sure Cally was being watched after someone she knew, and who cared about her a lot. Martha had no choice but to accept; Martha couldn't stand the idea of leaving Cally alone in a hospital or with a strange new live-in nurse.

Martha spent the next few weekends with Cally, who looked worse and worse with each visit. Martha felt as if she was losing hold of herself, and almost wished she had never met Darla and Stewart, wishing they had never moved in across the street. Martha loved Cally so much but the pain she could see in Cally's eyes, where they were once full of joy and innocence were now filled with pain and sadness. Cally looked how Martha felt. Each time Darla and Stewart spoke with the doctors the news got worse. One of the last trips they were taking to see their parents Martha was with Cally. Martha was alone with Cally all weekend, caring for her, reading to her, telling her stories, sharing everything she possibly could. Martha loved Cally, and couldn't bear to see this poor, fragile, innocent child have life drained from her so slowly and painfully.

When Darla and Stewart returned home from their trip, they thought it strange that Martha was not in her usual spot to greet them in the living room after having made sure Cally was asleep. Thinking she may be in the bathroom, Darla goes to Cally's room to check on her baby. On her way up the stairs she starts to get a strange feeling. Thinking something just does not feel right, that things are too quiet, and that she hasn't heard Martha in the bathroom she passed on her way upstairs, or hear even the slightly snoring or cooing from Cally in her sleep as she neared the bedroom door. She quickens her pace and throws open the door, to find Cally, who looks as if she is peacefully asleep in Martha's arms.

Her tension eases slightly thinking both are fast asleep. Darla gently goes over to wake Martha and pick up Cally, when she notices neither of them are breathing deeply, as one does, while they're asleep. She also notices that neither of their chests’s are rising and falling... Reaching out a hand to wake Martha, her fingers press against icy, hard skin. Darla screams, grabbing Cally, trying to shake her awake. Nothing happens. Stewart, seconds later, races into the room bewildered at what all the commotion is andd after failing to understand what Darla is yelling about through her tears, Stewarts eyes fall upon a medication bottle that he hasn't ever seen of Cally's before. He picks it up, and reads the name on the prescription bottle. It formerly belonged to a man named Stanley. Dropping the prescription bottle and slowly backing away taking his wife in his arms, he looks from Cally to Martha thinking, “Martha Stadler, what have you done?!”