2-4-23 Anna, Daughter of Rosa – Old Anna
When the kids from the Order met Anna she was seventy seven. She called herself ‘half blind,’ not knowing that a remedy was at hand – removal of the cataracts could correct her vision drastically. But she had no one to take her on several appointments needed prior to surgery – so she let it go, just getting by with what she had. She was severally nearsighted & had ‘floaters’ – bits of darkness in front of her retina, trash in the eye that usually gets flushed out, but it wasn’t. When she took off her glasses everything beyond a foot in front of her was blurry.
Copyrighted by Rasa Von Werder, 2023, all rights reserved.
This is part of the book being written by Rasa ‘Church of Women’
This is how Stevie & his sister met her, in front of her ‘shack’ which was not really a shack but looked like it from the outside – inside was beautiful & every amenity you could want – it had been repaired & equipped with many what seemed to her ‘luxuries’ {as she had lived with her Mom in relative poverty all her life.} We shall get to her married life later, where the husband of Anna fixed her property to a large degree – he worked in construction.
Little Stevie was the ‘boy wonder’ of the Order, just ten years old. He now lived in the Mobile Home Park affiliated with the Order – a wonderful place. His Mom continued living at the Convent with his four sisters – all boys upon reaching the age of ten had to leave the Convent & live elsewhere – the Mobile Park was not far, he lived with a Member of the Order who loved him dearly – he was allowed a dog there,
he wanted a ‘Toto’ but they didn’t have one at the shelter – he got a Beagle weighing about 30 pounds, a sweet rascal he named ‘Mover Good Foot’.
The lady he lived with – Theresa – had an apple tree right next to the home & made wonderful pies which she topped with whipped cream for Stevie. The dear boy visited his Mom almost every day, Theresa took him there & brought him back, or he walked alone the 20 min trek.
Stevie was a wonder for two reasons – his talent & his intelligence. The resident Doctor of the Convent – Maude Leena – had a psychology degree & a genius – {never without a book in her hands, the study of psychology, sociology, human & animal behavior & medical remedies – had given him an IQ test which determined the score of 150. He was also the best dancer– that was debatable among the kids but the Elders said he was.
{All the kids & even Elders of the Order danced daily. There was a paid female ballet teacher one day a week, then a volunteer who had been on the stage – she set up various programs where they practiced first one type, say ballroom, for a few months, then what you might call ‘modern dance’ which was pseudo ballet, then a potpourri of contemporary dances starting with the Charleston & ending with rock’n’roll. This volunteer was a Member who lived off premises, she came every day but one to put the Members through their paces. They first had to do the exercises of the ballet Mistress. They were told that they must not only stretch but strengthen every muscle, & you
had to keep this up as long as you wanted to perform. So each & every day saw 20 minutes of this routine & it enabled some to do high leaps & even splits in the air eventually. Little Stevie stood out & he had one brilliant female challenger– eleven year old Marjorie.}
They also did ‘sit down dancing’ many days, especially when it rained or in winter {although they were encouraged not to fear the cold – it’s been said there’s no bad weather – only bad clothes. Bundled up, they braved zero degrees outside for short treks, little kids as well as Elders. Some members prided themselves on their ability to face the cold & worked or played outside in bitter weather for hours. But kids were monitored strictly with super warm clothing, making sure to put thick boots & gloves & cover their heads & necks.} – almost daily the entire Membership sat in chairs or leaned on them or the stage {they used the huge barn @ this point for their home & it had a stage} & music with a good beat was played – often that of the ‘roaring 20’s – & a leader with dance experience would sit in front suggesting moves – they could follow or make up their own – & that way everyone got good exercise even if they were older with arthritis or bad hearts & could not prance around. The kids from any age they could walk were put on the stage – {they had a stage in the huge remodeled barn where this took place} & the grownups sat in their chairs below the stage, with
the leader sitting on the edge facing them, the kids mostly on stage jumped, danced & pranced, some even did somersaults or splits. {This ritual they called ‘Good time Charlene.’ It was practiced after sunset in summer when you could no longer do gardening, weeding, landscaping or play the usual sports.}
Sometimes an individual on stage was ‘on fire’ with the music & lost him or herself & everyone would stand back, let her emote, clapping & cheering. Chair dancing lasted one hour average 6 days a week, not even counting the regular dance class – so many Members were practicing two hours a day or more! If they were busy with other projects it would be skipped – but not often. If two days went by without the chair dance people complained – it was therapeutic. The Elders said it alleviated their stiff joints & muscles & helped their bowels. {If someone loathed it, were preoccupied or tired, they could stay in their room, work in the kitchen, tend to their computer work *some had projects for the Order like Social Media sites as their Journals, or blogs for their Journals or highlights & meaning of the Order, etc.* or do something else. It wasn’t mandatory. Some who already danced one hour might skip it.}
Stevie did not have to go back to the Convent for regular School, as they had that at the MobilePark – but he wanted the extracurricular stuff. And he loved dancing & many other classes, so visiting was not just to hug Mom & tease his sisters.
On one of these visits it was noticed that their beloved cat Tommy was missing {he was dark tigerish with a heart on the back of his neck} {every family in the Convent was allowed a pet cat but no dogs, as dogs would make too much noise & would also chase the cats & go crazy at the wild animals feeding outside in the ‘Beastaurant’} – & he would stay away for a couple days at a time. Pretty soon he was absent as much as present. This was a mystery no one could solve. Stevie wanted to solve this by following Tommy & asked Mom for permission.
He took his eight year old sister Margie with him & off they went, following Tommy into the woods a good distance away so he wouldn’t get skittish, although he paid them no mind. They walked so far, through so many ups & downs in the wilderness including crossing creeks; the half hour felt like two.
But finally they came to a clearing & saw a dirt road & a sort of shack on its far side, & Tommy meowing loudly outside its door, with an old lady coming out & greeting him warmly.
“Oh, my good Johnnie’ she exclaimed, stooping down as if she wasn’t sure.
“Is it you Johnny?”
She petted him & recognized him after getting close {she had other cat visitors!} & said,
“Come inside, I’ve got some chicken on the stove, it’ll be ready in a few minutes. We’ll eat hearty!”
And they went in.
“So that’s where Tommy goes!”
Exclaimed Stevie & his sister said,
“If she gives him chicken every day & pets him a lot, he must like it here.”
They were trying to figure out if they should knock on the door but were afraid. After a while they stepped closer. They could hear chickens & a rooster in the pen. Behind the shack beautiful Wisterias climbed up the pines to 100 feet. There was a large lilac grove to the side of the place, all emitting a lovely fragrance. They stepped on the porch, which did not have an awning & there were plenty windows in front. They could see plants on the window sills. To knock or not to knock? Finally they did & old Anna opened the door.
“Yes?”
She said.
We’re here to see where Tommy goes & we followed him, he’s our cat, we just wondered where he went.”
“Aha, this is your cat? And who might you be? And I apologize if I have kept him at times, but he’s been free to go, he likes to visit. I call him Johnnie. Please come in.”
The kids were a little nervous but Steve put his foot to the door & didn’t want his sis to think him a coward, she followed after him.
They were surprised to see how beautiful it was inside. All huge logs could be seen making up the walls, the ceilings had beams. Windows everywhere, all neat & clean, beautiful brown fur sofa & couch with foot rests, a standing wood furnace in the living room with glass door – must be cozy in winter Stevie
thought. Thick throw rugs, also brown, were here & there.
“Come into the kitchen, I have fresh corn bread with butter & strawberry jelly if you like – And tea or orange juice. Sit at the table.”
Tommy rubbed against their shins as they sat down at table.
They noticed more of the ambience. There was a wood-burning stove for cooking & baking, black iron with white porcelain trim, & a gas-burning stove right next to it. This was neither a shack nor a rugged ‘homestead’ – something in between, all the rustic parts plus today’s conveniences. And as they looked through an open entrance from the kitchen they could see a laundry room which housed a washer & dryer, a table for sorting & a line where some delicates hung.
They glanced at the window sill which sported jars with dandelions, a big aloe vera was on the sink frame reaching its branches to the light, & scallions & a red geranium. All the floors were wood, stained & polished black.
Finally they got to talking.
Stevie & Marge explained their Order in a few sound bytes:
“We live in a religious Order, we believe in a Mother God & we’re different than other people. We have a couple buildings we call ‘The Convent’ & we also have a Mobile Park where some of us live – where I live right now.
It’s a wonderful place. We study all kinds of subjects, we play sports every day & we have dancing lessons. We learn all sorts of things besides regular school; we have a lot of fun.”
“It sounds great,”
Says Anna.
“My name is Anna. I’ve lived here all my life. My Dad was a farmer, my Mom ran a General Store where I helped her & when she died, I ran the store until there was no business. All the people moved away when the new highway was put in. My old friends died or moved to Florida. The houses around me were either abandoned or bought by outsiders who use them for summer – all kinds of city people & foreigners. I don’t know any of them but see them drive by or in town. This road now, I sit on the porch at times & only one car an hour passes by, all strangers.
I have few friends now, mostly Herbert who stops by to check on me. He lives in a little room in his barn, he doesn’t have a phone. I’m kind of isolated so it’s nice to have you guys visit.”
They continued talking, Marge bragged about her sports – she was expert at croquet & was already a cook. She had learned to bake tiny loaves of bread since age six. {Anna was querulous re this but did not voice her doubt.}
Then Stevie jumped in. There was some music on the radio & he exclaimed,
“I’m the best dancer in our group!”
And jumping out of his seat he proceeded to dance in an empty space between the kitchen & living room, doing a small leap & then twirling round a dozen times like Baryshnikov.
Anna was amazed & beginning to believe what these kids said was no hot air.
“How could you do that at such a young age?”
He said,
“We dance every day, not only the kids from the time they can walk but the oldsters like you!”
Anna’s tea was unusual – she gathered red clover & Yellow Dock from the fields all summer, dried them in the bottom of her oven, & would add some peppermint leaves. The kids accepted brown sugar & condensed milk with it; it was delicious. Anna mentioned that she used a sprig of aloe leaf in her salads, as it was as powerful as garlic for health – no bitterness, just a bland taste & sticky, went well with mayonnaise. They ate the aromatic corn bread with butter Anna had received from a neighbor who churned it from her own cow. After their snack Anna took them outside to see her chickens – ten of them with a rooster, fancy breeds, some with colorful plumage. She said her friend Herbert had brought them to her as chicks & said they were special. They had a nice pen which Herbert fixed so you could move the fenced in part to new areas – attached by a tunnel to their house – it wasn’t big but after the hens scratched up the ground completely no grass would grow so by moving it, they got fresh new grass. It was rotated every week or two. Anna told them,
“When Herbert first brought them there were twenty five chicks. But half of them were roosters. And you can’t have more than one rooster to ten hens as they jump on their backs, & tear off all their feathers until there’s only raw skin left. You have to use the roosters for food, which means a chicken in the pot every Sunday, until there’s only one big guy left. And the hens we keep until they can’t lay eggs any more, than they go into the pot. And every summer we let one or two hens lay on their nest {in a special brooding spot where the other chickens won’t bother them} & brood new chicks. And of course that provides new roosters for food every year.
I used to have a cow {& her calf} for milk, butter & cheese, & a couple goats but when Mom died & I ran the store, I had to give them away. I didn’t have time to take them to pasture.”
They exchanged all pleasantries until Steve & Marge had to go. Tommy stayed behind as Anna took out a huge chicken from a 16 quart pot & was cutting a good piece for him into bites.
Stevie & Anna hurried back & when they arrived breathlessly told Mom & friends they had solved the mystery of Tommy. They told them about Anna & her plight & her eye problem, all listened attentively.
Then Dr. Maude said,
“We shall find out where Anna lives so we can get there by road. If you can describe what direction you took I think I can find it on the map. Anna might be a good person to know – if she needs help, we can give it. And she might help us – She might be a good member for our Community.”
And so they did. They found out how to reach Anna by road. The first line of business was the eye condition. Dr. Maude told Anna they would provide the rides to get all the tests done – & that cataract surgery could correct her vision to a point of seeing 20/20 either far away or close up – besides that she’d use glasses. Anna was overjoyed, & so it was, & the adventure with Anna began, & many more things happened which we will relate.
