Do You Wanna Buy A River?

Chapter 2

The next morning the woman still lay there in the muck. She was tired, dirty, hungry, and in pain. She began eating from the vegetation growing along the muddy bank. It was all she could do to keep herself alive.
After a week of plucking grass and weeds to eat, the woman still lay there. By then a bird had made a nest in her tangled brown hair and laid her eggs in it. The woman began to wonder if she would ever be rescued. She had no one who loved her and no one whom she could love...that all ended so long ago, so long ago. Long ago in a world of happiness and no river selling. Every night she would dream about happier days. The days full of happiness that would occur if she sold that river.
One morning she woke and she no longer had hunger pains. Her already small stomach had shrunken so much but she knew she must eat. She used all the strength she could muster to grab a handful of dollar weeds. She began to eat them and began to choke. The nasty roots had gotten tangled in her throat. Breathing was already hard with one lung functioning, but this was a new pain. She lay there gagging for about a minute.
Suddenly, loud steps came from the gravel path. It was the sound of boots running. As she lay there trying to gasp for air, she heard the rough movement of gravel and dirt. The person was sliding down the small hill that led to the creek. The woman began to feel her life slipping away as she felt two arms around her. She remembered temporary hope that she was being saved. Then it all went black.
She awoke in a strange place. She was in a dark room, but even in the pitch black she could tell she was on a soft cot. She felt a pain in her arm. She gently felt where the pain came from and found an IV stuck there. She also felt clean and realized that not only had she been bathed, but she now had on a small thin gown that she had seen patients been given at a hospital. But this was no hospital, but she knew that wherever she was, she was being nourished and taken care of.
"Hello?" She called but heard no answer.
"Anybody there?" She called louder but still no answer.
She called a few more times but heard no answer. She finally grew tired and decided that no one was going to answer her for now, so the woman decided that it would be best to get more rest and let the unknown savior take care of her.
After a couple days with the IV in her arm, she awoke one morning and noticed that it was gone. Free from the cord, she began to move about her new home. It was still dark but she tried to slowly make her way around. It took much energy for although she was growing stronger inside, she had not walked in over two weeks. She braced herself against what she identified as a wood wall. She knew that in order to get her strength back she must keep moving regularly.
As she was slowly walking, she bumped into something and as she felt it, she realized it was a small toilet facility. Next to it she found a small sink with soap and a cloth, She used it and then kept waking. She once more felt her bare feet hit something making a clanking noise. She knelt down ever so slowly and realized it was a plate. She gently touched the center of the dish and found it held food. She walked back to her bed and sat down. She began to feel the food and realized it was mashed potatoes and chicken and green beans. It was very filling and she knew that whoever was taking care of her did so with great empathy, kindness, and generosity.
That short walk had exhausted her tremendously so after eating her filling meal, she lay back and fell into a deep sleep.
She later awoke and decided she would see what was on the other side of her cot. Once again, she slowly got up and begin to move about. She bumped into something soon after standing up and realized it was a bedside table. She felt it and realized that although it had no lamp, it did have two small drawers. She felt in the darkness and found a cotton nightgown in the top little drawer. She pulled it out and set it on her bed. She then opened the second drawer a found it empty. She felt to see if anything was atop the small dresser and found another plate of food.
She gently moved her nightgown over and sat down on the bed and began to eat the stuffing that had been on the plate. She also drank from a cup she found on top of the dresser as well. She identified the beverage as some sort of smoothie that quenched her thirst.
After eating her food, she set the dishes back on top of the dresser. She now took off the gown she had been wearing. She let the cool cloth fall to her feet and she put on the new gown. As she put it on she felt that it was thicker and softer...it would provide more warmth. She then snuggled into her bed and as she stretched her legs, she felt a bundle at the end of her cot. She realized it was an extra blanket and she wrapped it around her frail body. She then fell asleep once more.
Several hours later she awoke again and reached over to the nightstand. She felt a plate there and found it had good on it. She extended her arm a little further and found another glass. She pulled the plate onto her lap and begin eating from it. After she was finished she put it back on the stand and drank from the cup. She placed that back as well. She began to wonder if there was another gown in the dresser so she rolled over and pulled open the drawer. She felt inside and found it empty. She opened the bottom drawer and found a pair of soft socks. She put those on and fell back asleep.
Every day when she awoke there was always a fresh plate of food. Every couple days she was given a new gown and new socks. She began building up her strength and needed less sleep now. She would move around her domain and found that it had no doors, windows or any way out. There was no light in this room that could be turned on. By the place was comfortable and somehow she like it.