Rose was stuck. Not just stuck in life. It was more like she was stuck in the story, Of Mice and Men. She knew that everything would work out if she just kept taking care of her till the end, but she found herself wondering if it was acceptable to kill the dog for her own good.
Rose had problems, some of which stemmed from the fact that she was a shepherdess. She was an old shepherdess named Rose, or Aunt Rose as she liked to be called. The old lady was so inspirational to many people that they were always wanting to know her story. It wasn't until recently that she found herself in the middle of a story, rather than on the outside looking in.
Rose had always been a storyteller at heart. She loved all types of stories. She was especially fond of the Bible because her father use to read it to her before she went bed, and she knew all the stories and the order in which they happened. That was very helpful when she was on her deathbed.
"There's been a mistake," she said to her daughter, Emma. "Ah do not want to die, tell Him Ah do not want to die."
"You've lived a long, long life," Emma replied.
"I know but Ah want to live longer. Ah'm too young to die."
"Rose, that's not true. You're 500 years old, that's pretty old."
"Not old enough to die."
"Rose, you need to relax."
"Ah can't relax. Ah will not die without having a story to tell. Ah won't. Ah have a story in the back of my head, a story about a little dog lost in the woods. Ah will not die until Ah hear that story out loud."
"We'll be calling the doctor in the morning," said Emma.
"That's fine." Rose said giving in, for now.
"Rose, you know we are giving you only a few months to live.
"Ah know.
"The doctor says we should be prepared for the worst - for anything to happen."
"Ah know.
"It could be tomorrow or a week from now. Just be prepared."
"Ah will."
And so the next day, Emma went and got the doctor to see her mother. She had not been feeling well. It was a long shot, but that's the way a lot of things go.
"It's not God," Emma replied.
"Tell Him Ah do not accept His authority. Tell Him Ah do not want to die. Tell Him that Ah have life left to live. Tell Him that Ah have children to send to Him and friends who need Him. Tell Him that Ah need to live to do it."
"It's not God," Emma replied again.
Rose was not overly religious, she kept her beliefs to herself mostly. But if God was looking for lost sheep, she thought she could be a very good one. One thing she knew about God was that he was a very good listener. She often told all her neighbors about the work that He did in her life. She was very good at it as well, so she knew she would get the credit.
"And so it befell, that they who believed in Him were not turned away from Him. And then Rose fell unconscious."
After she woke up her doctor told her that she had a stroke and she may not make it. She had been worried about dying for quite a while. She had suspected that it was coming on, but she didn't realize that it was so close. Rose was very scared. She had not accomplished all her goals in life. She had barely started to touch them. She wanted to live a long life to make up for all the things she didn't get around to doing.
"Tell Him that I had to live to be a good Shepherdess. Tell Him that Emma and John need me. Tell Him that Jenny and Eddie need their grandma. Tell Him that I am not ready to die.
