The King of Sublime Madness

events.

Chapter 1

Yes, that’s right hon. Mr. Bigelow is the one with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The town is called Alperton. I’m just pulling in now. I’ll see you Sunday night. Love you dear. Bye bye.

Dr. Martin Ridgley quickly ended the call with his wife as he found the black mailbox with the yellow arrow on it and he pulled his big anthracite-gray Teutonic sedan off the highway and onto the asphalt driveway. It winded back through the thickly wooded hillside just above an old stone bridge over a small creek feeding down into the Yohogheny River. The trip to the southeast of Pittsborough took him past a few rusty steel towns and the harsh metallic odors from the mills that lingered a little in his sinuses were now being replaced by the fragrant scents of the firs and pines. At the top of the driveway Dr. Ridgley pulled alongside two other vehicles parked in the paved turnabout looping below the house.

Hi there Dr. Ridgley! shouted a voice from the side entrance. Mr. Bigelow is expecting you. He is so happy you decided to come, she exclaimed.

Yes, replied the doctor. The directions were excellent. It’s very woodsy out here.

The doctor used the car’s door to crane himself up and off the russet leather that momentarily clung to the back of his blue oxford shirt and seat of his khaki pants. His husky frame wobbled a little until his feet felt stable on the ground again after the long drive.

My name is Chelsea Garrett and I’m very pleased to meet you. I’m the RN that comes to see Mr. Bigelow.

Very nice. I’m so pleased to meet you.

Dr. Ridgley surveyed the nurse’s appearance and deemed her a sprightly woman in her early thirties with thick, dyed blond hair worn in a shorter perm style. She dressed in scrubs with aqua-green pants and flowered top. Nurse Garrett bounded back into the house and the doctor smiled to himself, imagining she had springs instead of bones in her feet.

Won’t you please come in and I’ll introduce you, Nurse Garrett said. First, this is Mrs. Roberts. She takes care of Mr. Bigelow too.

Hello doctor. I am happy to make your acquaintance, Mrs. Roberts warmly joined. Mr. Bigelow wanted to have a roast beef tonight. We hope that’s okay with you?

Absolutely! replied the doctor. I didn’t see a pizza shop for miles!

The three laughed with each other and Mrs. Roberts showed the doctor and Nurse Garrett how the preparations were underway. A tray of homemade dinner rolls were all set to go in. The ceiling fan blended the pleasant tang of the roast beef, carrots and potatoes and wafted it through the home. Mrs. Roberts wore a thick apron the color of light pink granite made so from many years of washings. Its frayed seams held fast as a really great pair of old blue jeans might. Across the front, the logo spelled out the name Maria’s arched in embroidered black script although the thread was now nearly drained to a light shade of pencil gray.

Mrs. Roberts did not look Dr. Ridgley in the eyes; however, he was taken aback by how darkly deep their steel color looked when they came into his view. So dark in fact that he couldn’t tell for certain where she was looking. Dr. Ridgley considered he was able to sum up a person’s bodily condition upon his first perusal but he saw in Mrs. Roberts something very different. Her body had seemingly no fat whatsoever yet she was by no means a waif. Her build appeared as that of a decathlete. Certainly she is someone who worked hard all her life. Perfect posture he surmised with tanned skin, toned muscles and strong frame. Her hair was a fine silky gray, pulled back and held up with at least half a dozen plain brown bobby pins. Quite a contrast to his shiny scalp and portly profile he thought. She had to be older than he and his wife but how much he wasn’t sure.

Well, well, well. Thank God you decided to show up. I don’t think I could ever finish all this by the time I check out, said a lean-faced Joel Bigelow as he materialized from the hallway to the kitchen.

Now don’t you go getting all negative with the doctor now, chirped the nurse. You have had a very good day so far.

It is truly a pleasure to see you again Dr. Ridgley, Joel responded, as he extended his hand for a shake.

Oh, now you know. The pleasure, it really is all mine. You have such a wonderful place out here. And the help’s not bad either!

Hah! Joel exclaimed, If you only knew what these two put me through.

Now, you said you would be nice and not be a grump tonight! Mrs. Roberts called out. Now, go and relax in the front room. I’ll bring some nice snacks for you because dinner will still be a while.

Dr. Ridgley held his surprise in check as Joel wore only a pair of dark blue athletic shorts and a teal colored tee shirt. His physique seemed remarkably toned and fit considering all the radiation and chemotherapies he had endured. Dr. Ridgley remembered Joel as tall but he revised his estimate now as Joel must be at least ten inches more than his own height. Old acne pock marks swathed the skin on the sides of Joel’s neck. His forearms had a faint interweaving of scratch marks apparently made by his own fingernails.

Joel led Dr. Ridgley through the handsomely furnished dining room and a short hallway into the front room. The ceiling rose up dramatically from the hallway into the main room and, after two steps down, the room appeared even more expansive and lavish. The furnishings were all hardwoods and leathers in the hues of brick red and ivory. The wall to the left curved inward, transitioning into the massive fieldstone fireplace in which a small flicker licked the charred logs that had been on tenterhooks for reinforcements since early in the day.

I’m going to leave your meds for you now, but you be sure you take them all with dinner Joel, instructed Nurse Garrett. I put the ones for bedtime on your nightstand, as usual, she said, winking at Dr. Ridgley.

See, she’s still trying her best to poison me Dr. Ridgley, Joel wisecracked.

Hah! laughed Nurse Garrett, If I wanted to poison you, you’d be long gone honey! and the three shared a laugh. Joel started to cough, doing his best to stifle it.

Now I need to go sweetie, but I’ll be back around about nine. You be well and don’t overdo it Joel. It was such an honor to meet you Dr. Ridgley.

Okay, the doctor replied, it has been my pleasure indeed Nurse Garrett.

Mrs. Roberts entered with a tray with several different juices and water. Then she turned to go back for more and she quickly returned with a tray laden with sliced salami and venison sausages, fancy crackers and several aromatic cheeses that looked mouthwatering. The tray was framed with some chopped local produce and included two appetizing, creamy homemade dressings.

This should tide you over sirs, she said.

Oh my goodness! the doctor exclaimed. This all looks quite delicious. Thank you so much Mrs. Roberts.

I hope you don’t feel the need to lecture me on the meat and cheese Dr. Ridgley, Joel said. I figure it’s a moot point now.

I think it’s wonderful that you have an appetite Joel. That’s a very good sign, the doctor replied. Besides, I love this food too! Plus, I don’t have to tell my wife! and the two shared a laugh.

Your secret’s going to be safe with me, said Joel, with a somewhat depressed tone.

Dr. Ridgley took a moment to study the room as he consumed a sumptuous stack of meat and cheese. A grouping of large oak bookcases covered most of the wall on the side of the room opposite the fireplace. A handmade quilt, very old but in pristine condition, was hung on one wall inside a huge acrylic-glazed box frame. Another large oak and glass cabinet housed dozens of baseball relics. Some appeared to be especially old, perhaps even from the 1800s. There were two small, fingerless leather gloves, various murky colored baseballs and long thin wooden bats, all darkened with a patina of the years. Four imposing game mounts, including an elk and three large deer, hung high up on the wall. One deer had grown peculiar atypical antlers, but was otherwise phenotypic in size for the region.

You really have a beautiful home here Joel, Dr. Ridgley commented.

Thank you very much doctor, Joel replied. I had it designed by a great architect named Harvey. He’s had some pretty innovative designs built over the years. I have enjoyed being out here in the woods while still being close to the cities. It’s relaxing and there’s a lot to do out here. Hunting, fishing and nobody bothers you much. I own over three hundred acres.

Dr. Ridgley considered asking whether Harvey was the architect’s first or last name, but let the question go. The design of the home was attention grabbing and could be best described as a contemporary interpretation of the chalet. Expert craftsmanship was evident throughout all the rooms.

When did you build here Joel?

I had the original home taken out and this was built in, about, seventeen years ago.

You seem to have the help you need. Someone’s been caring for the grass and outside?

Yes, Joel said, there are a couple high-school kids who come around once a week. They get me marijuana too. Does that surprise you?

I’d rather you didn’t Joel, but I know a lot of cancer patients use it. Medicinally. I wouldn’t prescribe though because there are much better conventional options.

I only smoke when I’m alone.

And Mrs. Roberts? questioned the doctor. Does she know?

Not about the pot. No. She’s a wonder, Joel elaborated. Mrs. Roberts is a widow and lives near town a few miles away. Her kids and grandkids live in the city and they come around every so often to visit. I guess they try to get her to move closer but she likes it out here too. I pay the high school boys and a local handyman to keep up her place too. She’s an Indian. I mean a Native American.

Really? That’s interesting, Dr. Ridgley responded, with a somewhat incredulous tone.

Well, said Joel, Mrs. Roberts is in her early seventies even though she looks ten or fifteen years younger. At the time she was born, there were a lot more indigenous people that lived their own everyday lives in this area. Of course, they go back who knows how many thousands of years here. Even after the Paleo-Indians of the lithic period. Anyway, she married a man, also a Native American, who was a millwright after the Korean War. I guess he passed away about fifteen years ago. Big, good looking guy with gigantic hands. Unfortunately, I didn’t know him long enough.

That’s too bad. He died much too young, Dr. Ridgley added.

Yes. Mrs. Roberts is very well thought of around here. A lot of people look out for her too. But she likes to do things for everybody. Always cooking and doing nice things for people.

It’s interesting how all the history in the region comes down to personal histories. Family histories, said Dr. Ridgley.

That’s so very true, Joel agreed. The books don’t usually reflect that, but the places have their remnants. Believe it or not, we actually still find arrowheads in the woods here. Other relics too.

That’s really something, Dr. Ridgley replied. I always enjoy visiting the natural history museum. But I’ve wondered why it doesn’t well represent the region as much as it should.

Most definitely, you’re right. There are two smaller museums around that have better compilations and have more in-depth information. There’s a burial mound over in Kanawha. They have a large collection but they don’t seem to know how incredibly important it really is.

How do you mean? Dr. Ridgley asked.

Well, Joel answered, It’s a matter of perspective. I guess that’s true of all history and who is telling it. The usual angle is pretty ethnocentric.

You mean from the viewpoint of the settlers? Dr. Ridgley asked for clarification.

Yes. Exactly. You know. Take a historical figure like Lewis Wetzel. He and his family were hostile toward the native people and, obviously, vise versa. Some consider him an American hero. A frontiersman. School kids are still taught that. From the native people’s perspective he was a mass murderer. No one will ever know the stories of all those who were killed in those days, both natives and settlers.

The Monroe Doctrine comes to mind, Dr. Ridgley reasoned.

Yes, Joel said, Manifest Destiny. But your average person today has no perception of the vast length of time native peoples lived right here. The average person’s concept of a life is, maybe, three or four generations or so. Take just this area around the river right here. Who knows how many people were born, lived and died? Maybe tens of thousands right around this house. With maybe a hundred or more languages evolved over that time. That, to me, is the saddest part. All that was extinguished. Some of the most eloquently human, natural spoken words are gone forever. When you have oral traditions that transcend many thousands of years, written language is not so important when individual expression and the social bonding of the words and narratives preserve the knowledge and wisdom through such a vast expanse of time. But they weren’t seen as human beings by the colonizers. More like sub-human or, more brutally, as savages. You know, dangerous wild animals. Calling them quote, ‘noble savages’ made the atrocities, you know, seem less vilifiable, if that’s even a word. They had a different world view that’s for sure.

Dr. Ridgley found himself amused by Joel’s mannerisms, especially his frequent use of air quotes with his index and middle fingers wiggling in front of him. Joel’s facial expressions shifted in disconcertingly quick transitions, from all smiles to gloomy to irascible glances, apparently into space. Yet despite these gesticulations there was an evenness and consistency in his speech patterns.

You kept the artifacts then? Dr. Ridgley asked.

Sure, Joel replied, I have a big case full of them. I would be leaving them to the natural history museum. Unfortunately, I doubt they’ll never make it to the public displays. Nobody cares much about that.

Oh, I’m not so sure, said the doctor.

Joel went to a shelf on the bookcase and returned with a large, chocolate-brown stone spear point, more than three inches long.

Look at the workmanship on this spear head doctor.

My goodness. That is truly beautiful.

It’s from the Woodland Period. It could be over two thousand years old. I’ll bet he was pissed off when he lost it! Joel laughingly remarked.

You found it on your property?

Oh yes. Right down the hill there. I have over seventy points. Beads and shells too.

It’s a pity there isn’t a bigger Native American museum in town or around here that properly represents this history, Dr. Ridgley reiterated, distracted by his appetizer.

Well then. I’ll give you mine and you can drum up some interest and I can fund starting up one, Joel slickly stated.

Well. You are on to something there. I understand. Okay. I will take them and see they are preserved with respect. I do think it’s likely there will be some interest at the natural history museum but maybe around here too. Also, to change the subject, I wanted to come see you and visit with you this weekend. To thank you personally for the thoughtful kindness you have shown to our development board and your exceedingly generous contribution to our research undertaking. Your invitation for me to be here is, well, really an honor.

The honor is all mine, Joel said smiling. Besides, I know Dr. Abernathy put you up to it. I am really happy you accepted my invitation. I always thought we could have been great friends.

Could have? Well, I think we are Joel. That’s how I feel about it.

Yes, very much so. But I wish I had met you earlier in my life. But, as they say, that’s water under the bridge, Joel said dejectedly.

That is true but I really want you to know just how vitally important this endowment will be in future research and for people who will suffer a lot less because of you and your gift. I hope to let you know how glad the board is to have a benefactor with the resources and the compassion to know what this investment can do. Your generous contribution will affect countless people for many, many years into the future.

Thank you. I really appreciate the kindness of your personal acknowledgement doctor.

You know Joel, even though I am retired as a physician, there are those I meet that I still find I feel a wish, maybe even a need really, to personally help. I have known Dr. Abernathy for about thirty years and we have been close colleagues for over half that time. I was quite distressed to hear that you were tapering off your treatments.

I hear what you’re saying, Joel explained, but I have an inner knowledge that my time should be winding down on its own terms. There is no way I want to be plugged into machines to drag it out even for just a week or two.

I know you are not a religious man Joel. You declined all the offers to spend time with our chaplain. I suppose I thought, maybe he would accept me as a generic sort of chaplain. Over the past year you had related to us, implied really, that you had some tough times earlier in your life. Maybe you never had someone you could talk to about it. Or, perhaps if I could lend an ear for you. So you could get anything off your chest. Or, we could just talk about the good times. Whatever you want Joel, the doctor offered.

I definitely want you to know I appreciate everything. Dr. Abernathy has been terrific.

It’s not common for a patient to pay cash either, Dr. Ridgley quipped and the two chuckled. Joel attempted to subdue his urge to expectorate. He spit into his handkerchief as discreetly as he could. 

I never much cared for insurance companies. It seems to me they have the same business plan as the mafia. Gun to everyone’s head to pay up — then we’ll tell you what you can and can’t have, laughed Joel, again attempting to suppress a cough.

Let me say, I’m just a retired oncologist. So there are limits for me when it comes to understanding human nature of course, the doctor said smiling, yet, they say I still have my old bedside manner. I’m happy to say that’s not how I found you today. I’m delighted to see you up and about. I just wish we weren’t so late in the curve for palliative care.

That’s all on me doctor. I’m a stubborn cuss if there ever was one. That’s mainly why I want to have a really big contribution go to your work. Maybe more people will know what to do and have a place to go for help.

That’s exactly right Joel.

Sure, we can have some deep discussions and conversation. I could use that, definitely. I will have to warn you it won’t all be pleasant though, Joel cautioned.

Let’s just wait and see, the doctor said laughing. I’ve seen a few things in my life that would astound even you my friend.

Mrs. Roberts reentered to room and picked up the trays.

Gentlemen, Mrs. Roberts stated, your dinner will be ready in just ten minutes. Please be seated in the dining room by that time. Joel, I have made enough for me to have extra to take to Miss Kelly and the Brighton family. I didn’t think you would mind. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to go by their homes and take them some dinner. I’ll be back at around nine to clean up and be sure you and the doctor are all right for the night. Will that be okay with you?

Only if you prepared dessert for the Brightons and Miss Kelly dear, Joel needled her.

I did, Mrs. Roberts replied with a laugh. I made a nice yellow cake with chocolate frosting. The kind you like so much.

Well in that case, all right, I guess, Joel said with a smile. The doctor and I will be fine for a while. If we must.

Mrs. Roberts made a shooing wave of her hand and that look she gave Joel when he was acting too silly for her liking. She returned to the kitchen and stacked up the reusable containers she would fill after serving dinner. The doctor offered Joel a hand to get up, but