The Woman in the Window

Gloria was fifteen years old when her father got a new job that required the family to relocate to Willow Creek. She was uneasy about moving to a new town, because up until now, she had lived her whole life in a small town where everyone knew each other. She hated having to leave all her friends behind to start over in a new place. But here they were, unpacking boxes in their new home.

When Gloria went to get something out of the car, she noticed the woman across the street watching her with an extremely grim expression. Gloria couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy under her watchful gaze. She wondered what her neighbor's problem was.

Every time Gloria was outside, she saw that same stern face staring at her.

The following Monday, Gloria decided to be friendly and went over to introduce herself. She knocked on the door and the woman answered. She was sitting on an electric handicap scooter and her expression was cold and unwelcoming.

The woman asked sharply, "Can I help you?"

Gloria smiled nervously. "Hi, I'm Gloria. I just moved in across the street with my family. I wanted to introduce myself.”

The woman's eyes narrowed. "I see. Well, welcome to the neighborhood, I suppose. Just be sure to keep to yourself and stay out of trouble,” and then she slammed the door in Gloria’s face.

Gloria was taken aback by the woman's unfriendly response. She couldn't understand why she was being so hostile. What had she done to deserve that sort of treatment?

Feeling dejected, Gloria walked back home. She couldn't shake off the feeling of being unwelcome. She wondered why the woman was so angry.

For the next couple of days, Gloria noticed that the woman continued to stare at her from her window. It was starting to creep her out. She confided in her parents about the strange behavior of their neighbor, but they brushed it off, telling her not to worry too much about it.

But Gloria couldn't shake the feeling of unease. She couldn't understand why the woman had reacted so negatively to her.

On Thursday afternoon, Gloria mustered up her courage and knocked on the woman's door again. This time, the woman's expression softened slightly as she opened the door.

"What do you want now?" she asked, her tone less harsh than before.

Gloria took a deep breath. "I'm sorry if I did something to upset you. Did I do something wrong? Why are you so angry with me? "

The woman sighed and looked down at her lap, and then looked back to Gloria. "I'm sorry, it's not you. It's just that I've had some bad experiences the last several years. I was remembering those upsetting things the other day and today.

“You seem like a nice young lady…. You said your name is Gloria, is that right?”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“I’m Mrs. Grant. Come on in. Something tells me I should get to know you, Gloria. I just made some tea. Would you like some?”

“That sounds nice,” Gloria said. “Can I help in any way?”

“As a matter of fact, why don’t you serve yourself. The cups are in that cabinet to the left of the stove, and you can see the teapot. Pour yourself a cup, and the sugar is on the counter. When you’re all set, come have a seat here at the kitchen table.”

When Gloria sat down, Mrs. Grant continued, “I used to entertain my guests in the living room, but with this scooter, here in the kitchen is just more practical.

“So, tell me a little about yourself, Gloria.”

“Well, I’m fifteen and my family moved here because of my dad’s new job.”

“Fifteen years old…. Moving to a new town can be hard on a girl your age, leaving your friends behind and all. But your age is also good for meeting new friends. I think you’ll adjust here sooner than you think.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Gloria said. “What about you? How long have you lived in Willow Creek?”

“I’ve lived here 32 years.” Then she thought for a moment. “You know, no one has asked me that in a long time. I just realized, since I’m 64, I’ve lived here half of my life.”

“That’s a long time! Have you always lived in this house?”

“As a matter of fact, I have. My husband was here with me until he died in a hunting accident 29 years ago. We never had any children.”

Gloria asked, “What sort of accident did your husband have?”

Mrs. Grant took a deep breath and paused. Gloria was now concerned that maybe she shouldn’t have asked that question.

But then Mrs. Grant began slowly. “George, my husband, and Gene, his friend, were walking up a steep hill when George’s foot snagged under an above ground tree root. When George stepped back to slide his foot out from under the root, he lost his balance, fell backward and started rolling down the hill. He kept rolling to the edge of a 30-foot creek bank and fell to his death on the rocky surface below.”

“Oh, Mrs. Grant! How terrible! I can’t imagine having to go through that.”

Mrs. Grant was obviously upset at recounting that terrible event.

Gloria, even at age fifteen, was mature enough to give Mrs. Grant a few moments to come to grips with herself after remembering those traumatic details from the past.

Finally, Mrs. Grant said, “You’re right, Gloria. It was a terrible ordeal. But with the help of my friends, I was able to pull myself through it all.

“Fortunately, George was well insured, and I received enough to invest wisely. So, my living expenses are taken care of.

“But I was bored staying at home all alone. Even though I didn’t need the income, I began working as a receptionist at the Chamber of Commerce. I soon got involved in all sorts of community events, sometimes organizing them. I was always surrounded by lots of friends.

“But then I was in a terrible car accident….”

Mrs. Grant stopped talking again, obviously upset at remembering another horrible event.

Finally, she slowly said, “Gloria, I think I’ve said enough today. If you don’t mind, would you please come back another time?”

Gloria replied, “Of course, Mrs. Grant. I understand. I’ll check with you on Monday to see how you’re doing.”

“Thank you, Gloria. You’ve been good company for me today. That’s something I haven’t had in a long time. Please do come again on Monday.”

With that, Gloria excused herself and went home.

She felt that she needed to tell her mom about meeting Mrs. Grant and all that she had to go through.

Mom said, “Honey, I’m so proud of you for reaching out to Mrs. Grant. Even though it was upsetting for her to remember these things, it sounds like your friendship with her may be just what she needs. I hope you do go back to visit her.

“I think this will become a very memorable growing up experience for you. And if you need my help, you can always come to me.”

On Monday, Gloria went to visit Mrs. Grant, who was so glad to see her. “Gloria, thank you for coming to visit again. Come into the kitchen. I have some tea ready.

“Gloria, I want to apologize for abruptly ending our visit last week. Sometimes when I remember those terrible things, I just feel sorry for myself. You would think by now that I’d be able to describe those events without getting so emotional.”

Gloria quickly interjected, “Mrs. Grant, you’ve been through so much. It’s understandable why remembering those things affect you the way they do.”

“When you came the last time,” Mrs. Grant said, “I told you that I thought that I should get to know you and I was right. You’re the best friend I’ve had in years!

“And since you and I are now friends, we should be on a first-name basis. Please, call me ‘Laura.’”

Gloria did not expect such an honor. “Thank you, Mrs.…, I mean Laura.”

Laura took a sip of tea and then said, “Last time, I started to tell you about my car accident. But the details are not that important. It’s enough to say that it left me barely able to use my legs and have to stay in this scooter.

“Whew! I said it without getting emotional! As long as I don’t go into detail, I think I can handle just saying that it happened.”

“Way to go, Laura!” Gloria said. “You’re making progress!”

“Thank you, Gloria.

“But the accident cost me more than the use of my legs. For some reason, my friends seemed to disappear. They stopped coming to visit and they stopped inviting me to social events.

“At first, I brushed off their absence. They have their own lives, I thought. But as weeks turned into months, no one made any effort to come see me or invite me to be part of their lives.

“It was as if I was out of sight and out of mind.

“That’s when I started gazing out the window, watching as the world moved on without me. Life no longer had any meaning to me.”

Gloria realized the difficulty and said, “Oh, Laura, you have had a rough life since your accident. I don’t know your former friends, but I will be your friend.”

“Thank you, Gloria,” Laura said with great sincerity.

Then Gloria asked, “Since you have to use your scooter, what do you do about housework?”

“I hire Mrs. Gilder to come in twice a week. She cleans, does laundry and gets my groceries. She also cooks some meals that make good leftovers, like soups and casseroles. The rest of the time, I have a lot of frozen dinners.

“But I’m not totally confined to this scooter. I have enough strength in my legs to stand long enough to dress and get in and out of bed. So, I do have some mobility. However, I can no longer tend to my flower garden.

“But I do have a sunroom where I take care of my potted plants. Come with me, Gloria, and I’ll show you.”

Gloria followed Laura into the sunroom. It was filled with all sorts of strikingly beautiful flowers.

“Oh, Laura! These are all so lovely! You’ve done a magnificent job!”

Laura took Gloria on a guided tour, saying something about each plant—how to care for each species, which ones had problems and how she nurtured them to the beauty they now displayed.

After a while, Gloria had to leave, but before leaving, she said, “Laura, I have something planned tomorrow, but with your permission, I’d like to come back on Wednesday.”

Gloria came back on Wednesday with a plate of freshly baked cookies. Of course, they went well with their tea.

Gloria continued to visit Laura frequently as their friendship grew deeper.

On one of her visits, Gloria noticed some black and white pencil sketches of the sunroom flowers. So, on her next visit, she surprised Laura with a sketchpad and a set of artist pencils. Laura began using the various pencil colors to draw beautiful flowers.

After a few months, Gloria said, “Laura, the Willow Creek art show is coming up. I think you should enter your drawings in that show.”

Laura said, “Oh, Gloria. My drawings aren’t good enough to enter an art show, at least not one that almost the whole community will attend.”

“Yes they are!” Gloria insisted. And with more persuasion, Gloria finally convinced Laura to allow her drawings to be entered.

Finally, the date of the art show arrived. It was on a Saturday, and with Gloria’s mother driving Laura’s vehicle that was equipped to carry her scooter, the three of them attended.

As Laura rolled into the building, people began to notice, and some long-forgotten friends came over to welcome her. “It’s so good to see you,” many of them said.

As her old friends came by to greet her, Laura was thinking to herself, “These people are so glad to see me, why didn’t they ever come to visit?” But Laura kept those thoughts private. She realized, “I shouldn’t make a scene due to their failure to visit me in the past. I should be happy for the attention they are giving me now.”

Then she thought, “If Gloria had not started visiting me, I probably would make a scene and totally ruin everything.

“Thank goodness Gloria came into my life!”

Finally, it was time to announce the winners.

The first category was oil paintings. The winner was Albert Eperson.

The second category was watercolor paintings. The winner was Nora Burke.

The final category was sketch art. The winner was Laura Grant.

Laura couldn’t believe it! She was beaming with joy!

And so was Gloria!

When Gloria went to congratulate her, Laura said, “Gloria, thank you for encouraging me to enter my sketches! If you had not done that, I would have missed all that has happened today. Not just winning the award but meeting old friends. I’m so glad you convinced me to enter!”

Because Laura attended the art show, several old friendships were reignited. And people started to come by to visit her at home more and more frequently.

Gloria was filled with joy for reacquainting Laura with her friends in the community.

Gloria thought to herself, “Mom was right. This has become a very memorable experience for me. And I think I have grown up, at least a little.”

Many a time when Gloria was visiting Laura, one of Laura’s friends dropped in for a visit. And many of Willow Creek’s social elite became acquainted with Gloria.

Gloria remembered what Laura said on their first visit. “Your age is good for meeting new friends. I think you’ll adjust here sooner than you think.”

Gloria thought, “Not only am I meeting new friends my own age, but I’m becoming well known among Willow Creek’s leading citizens.

“Mom was right! This has been a growing up experience for me.”

One day when Gloria came for a visit, Laura met her at the door and said, “I’ve been expecting you, but I haven’t had time to make tea. Before we go to the kitchen, I have a special gift for you here on the dining room table.” Laura pointed to the table and said, “It’s covered with a blank sketchpad sheet.”

When Gloria removed the blank sheet, she saw a beautiful color pencil sketch of herself.

Gloria couldn’t contain her emotion. “Oh, Laura, this is so wonderful!”

Laura responded passionately, “Gloria, you have become my bright light. I can’t imagine what would have become of me had you not come into my world.

“You put life back into my life! “I would not have come out of my depression without you.”

Gloria leaned over and gave Laura a big hug and said, “Laura, this means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

“Thank you, Gloria,” Laura said. “Now let’s go to the kitchen and make some tea.”

Then Gloria looked closer at the sketch. She noticed that her portrait was off-center to the right side of the sheet, and on the left was a smaller picture. It was the woman in the window, Laura, staring at her dear friend, Gloria, not with a frown but with a radiant smile.