Tombstone.
This afternoon I walked over to the sheriff’s office and met Deputy Woody.I told her my ma was a pinkerton and Mr. Kris walked over, greeting me. We talked about learning Navajo and he taught me a few words. I asked if there was anyone else who was a Navajo but he said there was only a couple people, and a boy who lived at the orphanage.
I met a woman named Laurie and she said she was sitting alone because there was no one to talk to so I sat down, but she left so I walked into the clinic.
“Hi Doc Lilly. Need help?” I asked.
“Hi Lot,” Miss Suzy greeted the man walking in.
“How high?” Mr. Lot asked.
Miss Lilly continued to stitch the wounds on a man and didn’t seem to hear me at all, so I looked over at Mr. Kris and asked, “Mr Kris what's that man's name? I’m keepin’ track of our patients. For our reports.”
“It be Free, Miss,” the man on the bed said and I nodded, writing it down.
“Ok, just kinda weird looking in the doc office window,” Miss Suzy said to Mr. Lot. “Ya didn’t hit your head again did ya?”
“You do a lot of weird things yerself,” Mr. Lot pointed out. “Want me to make a list of em for you?”
I went to the sink and started to wash my hands as Miss Lilly continued to work on Mr. Free’s wounds, completely ignoring the fact that I was there.
“I have the cell ready for him Marshal,” Mr. Woody said.
“Ok sir come with me,” Mr. Kris instructed and Mr. Free stood slowly.
“You need to be seen again in a few days if it starts to bleed come back and we will put on a really tight bandage,” Miss Lilly ordered the patient. “Ned to take out those stitches in about a week.”
“Doc Lilly? I’m sorry I got here at the end. Didn’t know there was a person in here,” I told her. “Want me to change the sheet on the bed for you?”
Miss Lilly watched as the others left and took the sheet off and replaced it, without even noticing me. She dropped her instruments in the boiling water and cleaned up the tray as she finally turned to me. “Hi Natalie.”
“Hi doc Lilly. I coulda helped with the sheet and cleaning the tools.”
“If you could sweep up the sawdus i put down that would be a great help just sweep it out the door.”
“Sure I can do that,” I said and went to get the broom as I started sweeping and Miss Lilly washed her hands and the bowl. I swept the dust towars the door and then put the broom away.
“Great job,” Miss Lilly smiled. “Ok well it looks good in here now. We are ready for the next sick person or injury.”
“Thanks, Doc Lilly. What happened to that man?” I asked. “Was he shot, ma’am?”
“Yep, he got shot. Wasn’t too serious.”
“Oh okay. Glad he okay then.”
“Yes he will heal.”
“After he sleeps in jail?” I smiled at her.
“Well I guess that’s right. I don’t really know what happens unless they call me to the jail. I only do my best to stitch them up tight and put on medicine so they will heal. I only hope they try to keep the bandages clean and dry. All I can do. We just do our best in here. Lots is up to the patient. They have to be careful and do what we tell them.”
“Yeah. And I learned ’bout keeping what we find out here a secret out there.”
“True. What we do is only between us and the patient but its so open in here that isnt often a reality.”
“Right.”
“We just do what we can,” Doc Lilly said again as she reached into the water and pulled out the clean tools, putting them in her needle pouch. “We are here to help not judge if they are outlaws or the law we do our best to help anyone that needs help.”
“Yeah Mr. Stone said we had to help whoever comes in, even if they a mean person,” I told her.
“Right we help everybody.”
“I glad deputy Woody in town now. Sheriff Aly won’t be so alone.”
“We need all the law we can get.”
“Oh yeah Doc Lilly you know how I came from ’doption in Mississippi?”
“You did?”
“Yeah... well... this orphanage there... They were real mean and diddn’t know what to do with some of us so they put us on this orphan train. And see they always said I was nine cause that’s how they said I acted, right?”
“Really and sent you here?”
“But Miss Trin... she started takin’ care of me when I got here cause orphanage was awful and Miss Angi didn’t want me… Well… We were lookin’ at my birth stuff from the files from there. They finally came right. I ain’t nine!!”
“I didn’t think we turned away any orphans.”
“I been twelve this whole time and I never knew it!”
“Oh my!”
“They were all just lyin’ to me there and makin’ it up!”
“Well we need to feed you up so you can get strong. Cause in here we need to be strong folks that are unconscious are heavy. But I know there is food all around town like next door we always have cup cakes and ice cream.”
“Yeah Miss Trin feeding me lots.”
“That’s good.”
“She wants me to grow up tall cause they didn’t feed me much in Mississippi.”
“We need strong helpers, and you did a great job on the floor.”
“Thank you. Mr. Alex been teaching me.”
“So I know you will be a good help,” she smiled. “I went to school in New York to be a Doctor see my father is a Doctor there and he helped me to get the education it will be hard but with lots of work we can get you educated… It gets really busy here at times and if we can teach you even putting on bandages to stop the bleeding is a great help.”
“I can learn anythin’. I’ll tell Mr. Stone to teach me bandages tomorrow.”
“I know Mr. Alex will teach you to put pressure on wounds and pressure point in the body.. things like that but we need to get you strong first cause injured folks can be squirmy.”
“I work on that, Doc Lilly,” I nodded.
“Good.”
“I’ll be so big next time you see me. And I’ll go to the stables and lift hay every day. So it makes me strong.”
“Well maybe in a bit but we will get you all educated. You will be a big help, I am sure.”
“Is Nora an um... orderly person too or she a doctor? We was talkin’ in school yesterday about blood and stuff and Mr. Finesmith was all squirmy about it.”
“She has her education and she has lots of experience she is sixteen. Some folks are. Some can’t stand the smell of blood or just seeing it makes them pass out… So we have to get them away from the folks that are bleeding we don’t need all that fainting stuff to deal with too.”
“Can I tell you a secret Ddoc Lilly?”
“Okay.”
“Well... When I was in Mississippi I was almost gonna get adopted by Miss Ashley. She was real nice but she never wore a gun. Didn’t believe in ’em. Well one day we was out walkin’ and these mean men came over to her. They started pickin’ on her and stuff and then they shot her. Right there where we was standin’. I saw the whole thing. I took off my vest I was wearin’ and used it to stop the blood from her heart ’cause it was just awful... But we didn’t make it to the clinic. That’s why I wanted to become a doctor. Cause maybe if I help in the clinc and I put bandages on people, they won’t die like Miss Ashley.”
“I am sorry about that happening it is so sad it happens a lot here in Tombstone when I hear arguing or shooting I hide... we all do get behind something because lots of folks get shot by accident here not even like your lady friend she was shot on purpose.”
“Now I don’t even stay around for it to happen. I see people with guns out I run to clinic now.”
“And probably a gun wouldn’t have helped of there was more than one of them mean people.”
“Safer place to be and I can help maybe,” I nodded. “But that why I wanna be a doctor and that why I think I can handle it.”
“I hide quick. We will get you even more helpful as the time goes on but if something bothers you you let us know… It is hard here sometimes.”
“I will Doc Lilly. Doc Lilly?”
“Yes?”
“If you have hard day in the clinic... How do you um.... get to sleep? Do you use that chamomile tea stuff?”
“I am usually so tired my body wont let me stay awake.”
“Oh…”
“I wash my face and my body and then by the time I lay down I am ready to fall asleep. Things sometimes are bad here but i know we do the best we can and I believe that sometimes God says you did your best but it was time for them to go... and we have to let them it isn’t up to us all the time. So we can’t let the sad stuff stop us from working because we help God save a bunch too. That’s why I can sleep.”
“Yeah,” I smiled. “That makes sense.”
“So remember that at night.”
“It’s like ma.
Sometimes she catches the bad guys and figures out who did it. But that don’t mean that the deputies and sherrifs and stuff always catch ’em. She can only do so much to do her job.”
“Right. Sometimes they get away, but she does her best.”
“But she still gotta do it cause it helps lots of times.”
“That’s all we can do. I think I will walk home and take a bath... and maybe read a book.. you should go and do something fun for a bit we never know when we will be needed again.”
“Okay I will go read some more. Thanks doc Lilly.”
“Ok. Read something fun sometimes too. Not all work stuff, ok? I will see you later.”
“Okay. I read Sherlock. And Ma’s journals from long ago before she came to Tombstone.”
“Ohhh, love Sherlock!” she said and then we heard shouting outside. “Oh, shouting. I best hurry or I won’t get changed.”
“You think they might need us soon?” I asked.
“Hope not,” she said and we headed home before they needed us again, since both of us needed a break.
No comments:
Post a Comment