Tuesday, July 10, 2012

The Housekeeper...

She knocked on the door and announced "housekeeping".   We just needed the bed linens changed and the soiled towels replaced.  We asked if we could stay in the room while this was being done.  "Of course" she replied.  "Should only take about 10 minutes".

During those 10 minutes we learned that she arrived in this mid-western city two months earlier.  Her hometown was several hundred miles away.  She had fled an abusive relationship.

A relationship that made her decide to pack a suitcase and get on a Greyhound bus at 3:00 AM.  She left her car behind.   She told no one.  I repeat...no one...not even her Mom or her best friend that she was planning to leave or where she was going.   She feared that if "he" found out he would track her down...and she didn't want to think about that outcome.

After several hours on the bus, she arrived in another state not knowing anyone and with no place to stay.   She found refuge in the local homeless shelter.   She started this housekeeping job just a few days after her arrival.

She was really pleasant and polite.   She smiled often.   We asked if she would ever go back.   Her reply..."NEVER!"   "I had to get away and start a new life while I could...before it was too late!"

She couldn't have been a day over 20.   Her pleasant disposition and escape from abuse really touched me.   I thought about my own daughters.   I also thought about how fortunate I am and how the majority of us have no clue about her and so many other folks in her situation.   I will never forget her story.

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