A letter from May 1986
A kind manager takes Agnes shoe shopping
The administrator offers to drive her to the mall, where a friend of his measures her flat feet and fits her with good shoes that feel 'like velvet'. Johnny's $40 gift nearly covers them. On Sunday the church organist, back from the hospital, offers her rides to church.
Tap any word to hear the story from there.
That is the end of this story.
What Agnes says
Words in light grey italics were hard to hear, so they may not be exact.
Excuse me. So I had to go and I couldn't go to the pennies, to the mall, and get my shoes or anything, because I couldn't. I stood agan far, you know. And so here he comes and he shook my hands and how are you and everything.
I said, I'm not so good. I said, the doctor just told me that I have to have a real good pair of art supports and everything. And I just, I can't go to the mall or anywhere to get the shoes.
And I don't know how these close at hand here would be if they're going to have what I have to have. Oh, he says that, a little while, five minutes or so, you get yourself ready, and we're going to go to the mall and we'll try and get you this kind of a shoe you got a hand.
So he was really nice. He went, and he had a friend there at the mall, and they measured my feet where I used to go there for it, you know. And I, uh, I, uh, he measured right and left and everywhere else.
How, how, how, uh, how flat they are, my, my feet, you know. And all then, and they gave me the right shoe. And they said, I got to walk around and see how they feel and everything. And I got my little slippers I had.
I took them off and I walked and walked in, and they felt like if they were on velvet, you see. And the men said to me, oh, before we went, if I have money to go and if I have to have it from the table, you know, where the lady is, I says, no, I got enough money.
See, Johnny gave me $40. So I had the $40. Well, I said, I think I'll have enough for a pair of shoes, so we went. And it comes to pass that it was $49 and $99 for the shoes.
You got enough money. I said, I had, so I gave them the money. And I got penny back from Johnny's $40. But it was fine. Oh, he wanted me to keep the shoes on and walk with him. They're like that day, that afternoon.
And it was a nice sunny day. And when he said, from now on, you've got to wear them everything. I says, I don't know if I can because the nurses or the girls, they're so anxious to go in time, actually.
can't tie him. My tummy was getting a little bigger, you know. And so, he says, never nine, I'll do the time myself. He said, she's fine. So I hope, you know, that this was on Friday or Saturday. And Sunday morning, the lady that used to pay the organ and everything for me and used to come and pick me up, you know, at 10 to, 10 to 7 in the morning and I went to early medicine and now I went to pass the house few times but she didn't look like she had that she had a car there so I figured she is still in the
hospital she was there for three weeks see with something she had something with her gut or something to operate out so I just picked up and went the back way, and I went and went to the church. Fine.
So coming to church, into the church, up the stairs, she was up there where she had the organ. And she says, Agnes, I'm so glad you're home. She says, don't worry about going home. You don't have to walk it.
I'm going to take you with the car. I'm all right. so from then on I'm going with her in the car see