First, let’s get things straight. (Not necessarily in a straight-jacket.)
This story may or may not be true. Especially the part about the Escaped Mental Patient from Bellevue Hospital. All the rest is definitively and deliciously true.
I am repeating it to the best of my brain’s convoluted ability to get the story accurate. However, since this is the story of a story (with another story happening simultaneously within the photos) it might require a little discernment as to actual happenings.
Our daughter calls from Manhattan Tuesday afternoon. She was sitting on a bench writing in a notebook.
She says: “You’ll never believe what just happened!”
Since Mama lives in the middle of the woods where the most exciting thing that ever happens is a robin captures himself within a shed and proceeds to bang against the glass until A) someone rescues him or B) he dies…I certainly had no idea what could have happened to her on a Manhattan afternoon. You can only hope it wasn’t Awful.
Here is what happened according to our second-born child:
She leaned down over her notebook on the Manhattan bench, pen in hand, very engrossed, faithfully writing.
So engrossed that she barely heard a nearby voice, “Lady, is this south?”
She didn’t look up.
The voice grew louder: “LADY, is this way south?”
She was already giving directions as she glanced up in the vicinity of the passer-by.
“No, that way is north. South is this way–” and she pointed in the appropriate direction.
At that moment she took in the appearance of the questioner. He was a man wearing an open hospital robe. He wore gray socks. No shoes. And he took off running across the road, now headed south.
It took a moment to register. This looked like a hospital patient. It looked suspiciously like a hospital patient–running away.
Within forty seconds four burly security guards dressed in black raced down the road following the hospital patient.
Other witnesses in the area gathered to talk about this strange happening.
One of the people casually said, “Oh, he’s probably from Bellevue. Probably a mental patient. It’s right around the corner on First Avenue.”
What do you think, dear reader, of that exciting story?
In the meantime, you will be pleased to hear that our captured robin flew free. We rescued him. Barry nabbed the captive, wrapped him in an old towel, and set him squawking to the sky as he released his hands.
The forest exploded with bird song as the robin flew skyward.
P.S. Just googled Manhattan news. No reports of an escaped mental patient. If any Manhattan readers know more about this story…please comment! We are interested to know “the rest of the story…”
P.S.S. If it was an escaped mental patient from the hospital, surely hope that whatever happens will help him to heal and find peace. Blessings, dear escapee…
Well, well, well … I think the man had been “committed” by his money-grubbing family who wanted to get their hands on his money. Short of killing him (although they thought about it), they slipped something evil into his drink and took him to the mental ward, and told a story they concocted to make him look like he’d gone around the bend. When he came to, he was still looped, and that “confirmed” it. However, once the evil additive had worn off, he knew he had to hot-foot (or sock-foot) it outta there. Naked, or not, underneath his hospital gown, and clear minded, he managed to slip by security and ran for his life!
Leave it you, Laurie, to know what “really” happened! I think you’ve got a story here that just might be true… LOL! Gosh, don’t you love the stories which present themselves each day??
Wow what a great story!!
I love how you strung the great pictures with u through the story as well.
Two stories going on in the same way,very cool!
Kim
Kim, thank you. I thought the two stories mirrored each other quite a bit…
Well I, for one, am glad they both got away (I think…sure about the robin, less sure about the patient…).
Lovely picture of the bird! Hopefully it’s telling it’s story to it’s family tonight!
Dawn, it’s hard to think of people or robins being cooped up and captured. Here’s to freedom!
Hooray, hooray, hooray for robin freeing
and forest celebrating and dancing for joy
and all winged things flapping and clapping
about one of their own free by one of
our own……
Fountainpen
Fountainpen, isn’t it interesting that both birds and people will cheer when freedom happens? Today I am thinking with more worry about the possible mental patient. Hoping he is OK. Hoping that he gets free if that’s in his highest good…but gets returned to the hospital if that will help him more. Sigh. It’s not easy knowing what is right sometimes.
An escaped mental patient is hardly newsworthy in New York. There are at least a 100,000 lawfully releases mental patients living on the streets.
Rescued singing bird– that’s news!
Carla, really? Now I’m feeling very sad for the mental patients in New York City… wishing there was some way to help those who are ill. If it were as simple as helping a robin escape! Sigh…
Always some sort of excitement in the Drue homes….. 🙂
Cindy, we are a family who treasures stories and loves to write/tell them. We are always interested in Kiah’s stories from NYC as they sometimes look so outwardly different than the stories from the woods. But today the two stories seemed to mirror one another.
Nice work saving that robin! And a great closeup 🙂 http://www.photo-salsa.com
That was the best part of saving the robin, Kim. Getting a closeup like that. Seeing the robin’s rapidly moving eye…
What a beautiful photo of that robin in his straitjacket. Such dark eyes. I’ll bet it had a lot to tell its pals about its adventures.
Amy, I think the robins are still a-gossip about all of it! Another robin…sigh…was just pounding its beak against one of our upper windows. THAT behavior isn’t going to start again this year is it? (For all you other readers who don’t know what we’re talkin’ about, please read this from last year’s blog: http://centria.wordpress.com/2009/05/25/the-danger-of-philandering-husbands/ )
I love your writing. The inter-twined stories are beautiful. The birds were somehow aware of the victory of the robin as she escaped into the sky. In what ways we at all aware of the suffering of those among us who are trying to escape the confinement of their circumstances?
Thank you, Martha! I so appreciate your compliment today. Don’t you think that all of us–in some ways–are trying to escape the confinement of our circumstances? Some people in small ways and other people in large ways. The suffering is so sad…sometimes we simply need to be there with a helping hand…to lend directions or help free someone beating their wings against a glass window.
Beautiful writing, images, and ideas, thank you. Though not so deep in the forest, I also grew up where an unfortunate bird flying into the window pane was about the biggest thing to happen, that and, …on second thought, I can’t actually think of anything to rival that.
Fascinating image of a man in hospital robes hurriedly questioning south, that leaves an vivid imprint in the mind. Why south, I am left wondering.
Dear echoes, I love what your second thought said. Can’t actually think of anything to rival that!
Yes, the image of that man attempting to head south lingers. Was his home down south? Was he dreaming of summer? Did he once crew a sailboat in the Carribean and want to return to those carefree times? Was he looking for the Statue of Liberty? So many options, so many possible stories…