Knowing that Abigail’s heart was weak medically with a heart condition, great care and concern had to be taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death.
They called her sister and best friend, who headed to her house immediately. Abigail was surprised to see them. Following them arriving was a solemn knock on the door. Abigail did not know who it could be, her husband was at work and had a key.
Slowly she walked to the door and threw it open. Standing there was the sheriff. His hat was in his hand as he looked toward the ground. He asked if he could come in to tell her what needed to be said. Her heart started racing and it felt like she was hearing through a tunnel.
She sat down and tried to concentrate on what the Sheriff was about to tell her. “Ma’am I have some bad news for you,” said the Sheriff. She tried to emotionally brace herself emotionally. The Sheriff went on. “Ma’am it’s about your husband there was an accident and he could not be saved. I hate to ask but we need you to identify the body.” No matter how many times he gave this news, it was never easy on him. He had just changed her life forever.
She let out an anguished scream and her best friend and sister came running in. She was on the floor back to the wall. The Sheriff left, with hat in hand and a sad look on his face. The women pulled her up and made her walk to the kitchen, where they sat her in a chair. She was in a deep state of shock. She kept repeating he will come back.
They opened a bottle of wine, hoping it would calm her down. She took the glass and gulped it down wanting more. Her nerves were at their wits end. She would never see him again she thought.
She sat with her head thrown back upon the cushion of the chair, quite motionless, except when a sob came into her throat. The sobs shook her whole body, leaving her exhausted. This cannot be real she thought. All she wanted to do was sleep. She decided that they would take the wine and move upstairs to her bedroom. They made their way upstairs, grabbed extra blankets, and went into the bedroom.
The girls took all the pictures of him down and into a drawer. She did not need to remember these things tonight. She just needed to lay down and relax. The next few days were going to be the most painful of her life. They drank wine, watched comedies on television, and finally she had laid down to sleep.
The other women decided to stay with her, so they made beds out of pillows and blankets. Sleeping nearby in case she needed someone to talk to or just to be there while she cried. The first night was always the worst for grief. Tomorrow would bring new challenges and the women would be by her side to support and help her.
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