The Awakening

Prompt: The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend.


Shannon sat alone, staring at nothing. That was what everyone thought. Her wheelchair faced a blank wall. There was nothing there to see, not even a picture to look at. Every time the nurses moved her chair, she would move it back, facing the wall. She rarely ever blinked her eyes. So the doctor ordered the nurses to put eye drops in her eyes, four times a day. The only time she ever moved, was to get back facing the wall.

"The doctors say her brain is functioning normally. There is no reason for her catatonic state."

"She is not catatonic. She can move when she wants, she just refuses to do so."

Shannon could hear the nurses talking about her. She just smiled inwardly, her facial features never changing. She was still a young woman, only in her mid forties, with a light sprinkle of gray near her temples.

Shannon's pale blue eyes blinked as the day room darkened, and the evening shadows encroached upon the blank wall. Her eyes closed, her shoulders sagged, and her head slumped forward.

"She is ready for bed now. Don't ever try to move her before she shuts her body down."

"Why? What will happen?"

"She will tear you apart."

"Impossible. She can barely move."

"Don't say I didn't warn you. Now come help me get her ready for bed."

Tracy, the newly hired nurse, was frustrated that everyone catered to Shannon. After two weeks of watching Shannon stare at a blank wall, she was bound and determined to change Shannon's routine. Several times a day, she would move her all over the room. Shannon would move herself back, as soon as the nurse left. One day when Tracy went to move her, Shannon grabber the nurses wrist, sunk her teeth into Tracy's forearm and wouldn't let go. Tracy's scream echoed off the walls. It was several minutes before they could pry Shannon's teeth from Tracy's arm. When Karen finished disinfecting, and bandaging Tracy's forearm, she finally spoke.

"Don't say I didn't warn you, because I did."

"What is her story anyway? What happened to her that made her this way? Does she ever speak?"

"Only in her dreams."

"What does she dream about?"

"Her family."

"Do they ever come to visit?"

"No. They died in a boating accident, she was the only survivor."

"What was she like before the accident?"

"She was a famous artist, owned her own studio."

For the rest of her shift, Tracy couldn't stop thinking about Shannon. The next day was her day off. She spent her morning on her computer researching Shannon's name. As she read about Shannon's life before her accident, an idea formed. After getting approval from the director of the nursing home, she went shopping for supplies. When she returned to work on Wednesday, she carried a large box into the day room. After moving a table in front of the blank wall, Tracy placed the contents of the box on it's surface, then covered it with a cloth. She purposefully kept her body between Shannon and the wall. When she turned to face Shannon, she smiled. Shannon didn't smile back. There was a look of hatred in Shannon's eyes.

{i'}I hope this works.' she thought.

"Shannon, I have brought you a gift as a piece offering. I hope you like it. Will you let me move you closer to the wall?"

Shannon just stared at Tracy.

"I'll take your silence as a yes"

When Shannon's chair was placed in position next to the table she uncovered her gift.

At first, Shannon didn't move, she just stared at the wall. After five minutes she turned her head to looked at the table, then looked up at Tracy, and smiled. It was the first smile anyone had ever seen , since her accident.

"The wall is all yours. The acrylics are all yours. I would love to see, what you see on that wall. If you need anything else, I will get it for you."

Over the next few weeks, the staff noticed a big difference in Shannon, and the other residents. Their eyes seemed to sparkle brighter with each passing day.

Shannon soon was able to raise herself from the wheelchair, but was still unsteady on her feet. The staff had maintenance secure a temporary grab bar in front of the wall, so Shannon had something to hold onto, as she navigated the length of the wall. When her charcoal sketch finally met with her approval, she figured it was time to add some depth and color to her wall art.

In the beginning her muscles rebelled at her increased mobility, but each day saw her mental and physical abilities increase. As the painting progressed, the other residents would position themselves to better see the daily results.

The bright colors and attention to detail, shone like a beacon against the drab colors of the surrounding room. It was like an awakening happened in that day room. Residents that usually kept to themselves, now wandered around chatting. The blank wall, now a distant memory. Each person, saw something different that they could relate to in Shannon's mural. Memories long forgotten, were now spoken about openly to each other. Where everyone once spent their time lamenting about their current lot in life, they now began to enjoy the comfort they found in each other. A family was forged in that room by the time the painting was finished.

As the evening shadows crept along the floor, encroaching upon the beacon of hope, a lonely figure silently slipped into her room, and prepared herself for bed. As she closed her eyes a smile lingered. "

"My job is now completed. I am ready to join you. My family, my loves. I am coming home to be with you...forever."


word count: 984