Martha

Chapter 7 Small Town Big Hell

Chapter 7
Small Town, Big Hell

That Monday morning a weird silence deluged the classroom at the beginning of the American History first course. I usually wasted the first five minutes of the first class period waiting for students to realize they were in class after the weekend, however, that Monday everything came across so different to me, I couldn't explain. They all gazed at me with fixedly... definitely, there was something going on.

The class started, as usual, greeting my students, taking the attendance, and reading an article from the news to the class as a reflection or exploratory exercise for them. When I finished reading the article, the whole group was eager to participate... So freaking awkward.

Whiteboard marker in hand I veered to write the title of the article but in the instant, I turned to see a cartoon drawn on it. It was a couple, to be precise, a bride and a broom. Dressed in a robe and wearing a witch's hat and veil, the bride held hands with a man wearing a suit, tie and carrying a suitcase. The names written above each character are easy to guess. Letting escape a chuckle I rolled my eyes. It was obvious that more than one had seen me last Saturday walking Martha home. 

The whole class stared at me with clear expectation and enthusiasm written all over their faces as they waited for my reaction. I took a deep breath.

"Ok, first, I want to congratulate the student who made the cartoon..." That was something they didn't see coming as they exchanged prying and disappointment looks. "He or she has done an amazing job. The broom looks just like me... yet, for Mss. Higgins, as far as I know she wears no pointy hats and uses the broom only to sweep, for she is no witch."

Some students giggled but the majority remained in silence as I continued with my speech. "I think I'm gonna leave the cartoon there. You know, this could work. Sure we can use this as a starting point for today's class. In my hometown, there is a popular quote that says 'Pueblo chiquito, infierno grande', that translated means 'small town, big hell'. Any comment on the quote?" I asked the students.

A smart looking kid in the back of the classroom raised his hand and replied, "That means that a small town spins around gossiping. People in small towns know each other and tend to talk about everyone because they know into each other's lives very well and perhaps there's not much to do besides that."

"Excellent Luke, that is the exact appreciation of that quote. People in small towns, like ours, have its history rooted in the very marrow. Not having the amenities, neither the huge population you would find in big cities, where people is just a number, past events are hard to forget and sticks to the present sometimes setting a precedent for the future. Traditions, customs, moral issues and religious believes are intrinsically attached to this principle and are the basis for fundamentals such as law, politics and the evolution of that society in particular..." Here the students were like, 'What the hell with the teacher! Isn't him supposed to be mad at us? We tried to make fun of him and he is using the mocking picture against us! No way!' Yes, I read their pissed-off minds and with a hint of victory in my tone, I continued with my discourse. "Mss. Higgins is not a witch, for witches, as supernatural beings, do not exist. She is an enigmatic woman in this town as a consequence of her secluded and strange behavior... and class, strange for this particular society, because she'd just decided not going out so often and that could be easily accepted or considered normal in other cultures. However, for your tranquility, I am still here alive, in one piece and sane enough to tell you that I would not marry soon with Mss. Higgins or with no other lady. And this drawing has brought some light into this class... Homework: make a web search for cartoons, comics, propaganda or any illustration that resembles or represent the evolution of American History... An example: The Uncle Sam Propaganda... And get ready to bring art supplies, we are going to make some illustrations ourselves, for we have excellent and so skilled artists in this course... Class you are now dismissed. Have a nice day."

I left the drawing on the board. It helped me a lot. I only hoped it could help Martha too. For the subsequent courses, I would use it too... That took me to think again, why did people think she is a witch? What has she done? That lovely porcelain face and bedazzling blue eyes hadn't left my thoughts for the last two days. There must be something about her past, and past is precisely what fascinates me, that tied her to the tragic history of the Higgins-VonHeir mansion. Too young and beautiful to be a crazy widow or to have near a thousand years as people claimed didn't seem logical to me. Why did she live all by herself? What had happened to her that turned her into a hermit?

I was sitting on my desk when I heard a knock on the door. "Come in," I said.

A female voice replied, "Good morning, Mr. Grau", Paula, sauntered into the classroom, two cups of coffee in hands.

Okey Martha, my dear,  you will have to wait.