Monday, July 20, 2020
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| Short Stories : The Last Trip of the Hanseatic (Chapter 7) |
CHAPTER 7
Ms. Scholz, resident I am back in the home. I never thought I would be happy to come back home. My furniture, the old pictures Alwin had inherited from his grandfather. D a s is now my home. And hospital remains hospital. It smells like chemistry there. Here in the home it doesn't smell of chemistry, but of shit. But at least it smells natural, not artificial. Besides, I don't notice much anymore anyway. It's a cross, the older you get, the more everything wears off! You hardly hear, you see badly. And the sense of smell breaks down. That also has advantages. With the stench that we produce here. But when it comes to food, it is a disadvantage. Smell and taste go together. And that's how most of the bland tastes. When I think of the crusty roast at home. The whole house smelled of it. But good! Here I don't smell anything in the dining room. They probably have a modern ventilation system here that sucks everything off. But that's probably why it draws all the time. Like in a bird cage. The kitchen women close all windows during meals. Still, it pulls like pike soup.
Somehow my room looks different today than usual. The cupboard is now to the right of the window. He used to stand by the door. Wait, that's not my cupboard at all! And where are all the pictures? All away! Something's wrong, I have to ring the bell immediately.
It must have been five minutes since I first rang the bell. But nothing moves. How I would like to get up and look for a nurse myself. But I've been bedridden since my stroke. What a life. see badly, hear badly. And now I can't even get up. Gotta get me a bedpan instead of going to the bathroom. Like in the hospital. There I knew that it was only temporary. But now it's final. And of course I also have to eat in bed. Now you realize how good these electric beds are. A push of a button and the headboard goes up so that I can eat more comfortably.
Why is nobody coming there?
Mrs. Wimmer, nurse
Now she has come back, Mrs. Scholz. The day before yesterday she called us from the hospital and said that she was going to end. But yesterday she was much better. She really wanted to go back to us. But we have already allocated her room. Because it was clear that she would be bedridden in the future if she came back at all, Herr Schaumeier said we should put Frau Glöckner in her room, who had been on the waiting list for weeks. And Frau Scholz should go to the ground floor, there are the rooms for intensive care. It is also better for the ambulance, which such people need more often. Somehow I have a guilty conscience, she is so happy to be here again. And now her room is gone. And the furniture is in the warehouse, the caretaker is on vacation. Otherwise she could have been quickly put into Frau Scholz's new room. Maybe then she wouldn't have noticed anything. But that's how it is with us. The rooms must be occupied, otherwise our budget is not right.
Ms. Scholz worries me. This morning when I was handed over, the night nurse told me that she rang the doorbell three times and there was a stranger in her room. The third time, her face suddenly transfigured "Oh it's you, Alwin!", She said. I think she's coming to an end. Now, of all times, her daughter has gone on vacation. That is typical again, like an exotic place, an island or something. I can't afford the salary here. The day before yesterday she was here and said goodbye for two weeks. I have to check the file right away to see if there are any other relatives available to notify you if it comes to an end.
In the smoking room, the small television is on, a program is currently running about the last voyage of a cruise ship. My god, it's the Hanseatic. Poor Frau Scholz, she wanted so much to go on a cruise again. That's scary, something makes me go to her room. No sooner have I opened the door than I feel the uncanny silence. I notice immediately that it's over. I go back to the nurses' room and take out the index card. On the television you can see the ship slowly disappearing in the distance, with loud hooting it says goodbye and disappears into the vastness of the ocean.
Mrs Scholz
It is so dark in the room. I'm thirsty. But every sip hurts me. Little Britta leaned over me, trying so hard to take a sip of water. But I'm pushing her away. I'm sorry, I want to tell her I don't mean it. But I can't get a word out. She sadly leaves my room. I try to sleep but I can't. It's getting dark. Rain clouds are gathering. I am shaken back and forth by the wind.
It's such a storm today on the Hanseatic deck. The rain lashes my face, I struggle against it, can hardly stay on deck. The ship is heading south. Despite the bad weather, I can see the sun blinking out from behind the clouds. We will soon have achieved our goal. The sun is getting bigger. It is no longer raining, the whistle of the storm has stopped. Instead, I hear the band play. She plays our song, Alwin, do you hear? At The Beautiful Blue Danube. Let's dance to it. Take me in your arms, Alwin and lead me, carry me into the sun. Yes, it's so nice to get closer to the sun. It is so warm and bright, beautiful. Thanks, Alwin, I did it
I'm finally back home!
The End
Author : Hans Pürstner
