Bang, bang, bang! It’s still dark! Who could be at the door? Rubbing her eyes Louisa grabbed her housecoat, rushing to open the front door. A policeman stood on the verandah.
Dear God no! It can’t be John, can it? Grabbing hold of the door frame her legs began to shake uncontrollably.
“Mrs Engstrom, there has been an accident, John is in hospital, you need to come quickly.”
“I won’t be more than two minutes, Officer,” turning on her heel, she rushed down the hall to throw on her dress and coat.
Listening to the policeman on the journey into town, Louisa’s gave up trying to keep her tears in check. John had been clearing the building site. While carrying wood he had slipped in the mud, crashing down the incline, with the roughly hewn wood going everywhere. By the time his employer had reached him, he was screaming in pain with a large piece of wood sticking out the side of his face. He thankfully, lost consciousness, before being taken to the hospital. [1]
Not mincing his words the officer explained the piece of wood had torn his jaw and cheek, causing him to lose a lot of blood.
Four days later, in great agony, John gave up his battle.[2] Louisa never left her son’s side.
I should never have let him take that job. I should protect my children! He was only fourteen years old.
Tears streaming down her face, she clung to his hand. Oh my dear Johnny. Now I have to bury you too, beside your father and step-father!
Reflective Statement
I tried to write this story with Louisa’s voice at the forefront. I am not sure that I have succeeded.
I still find that I struggle with tenses and I must admit that I changed words ending in “ing” to ending with “ed” many times.
I found an article on the Trove website reporting on this tragic accident, in 1890. I wove my story from this information. My great Uncle was the fourth eldest of eight children to a twice widowed mother.
[1] Gunnedah. (1890, March 1). Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1907), p. 15. Retrieved May 27, 2017, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article71108542
[2] Australia, Death Index, 1787-1985 for John Brandt (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010), http://www.ancestry.com.au.
No comments:
Post a Comment