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Goodwin Girls
Goodwin Girls
Goodwin Girls
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Goodwin Girls

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Decades after the civil rights movement began its ascent into America; a young psychologist begins a search for answers to the mystery surrounding her grandmother Mercedess life when she was a student at a private school in a small Southern town.

Olivia Crenshaw had always shared a close relationship with her grandmother. When she is asked to fill in for a colleague as a temporary counselor at a nursing home in the town where her grandmother once lived, Olivia welcomes an opportunity she hopes will bring peace not only to her after her grandmothers death, but also to her grandmothers troubled spirit who visits Olivia nightly in her dreams. When she meets nursing home resident Rubee Beaudoin, who turns out to be her grandmothers former roommate, Olivia begins a quest to uncover the truth behind her grandmothers youth that she hopes will bring closure to both her and Rubee, who is haunted by her own memories.

As a psychologist, Olivia knows that Rubees fragile and fragmented mind holds the key to unlock the door to the past. As Olivia delves into her grandmothers former life with Rubee guiding her, she unearths the details of a tragic event that explains everything.
LanguageEnglish
PublisheriUniverse
Release dateNov 11, 2010
ISBN9781450252782
Goodwin Girls
Author

Diana Craig Bibb

Diane Craig has published short stories in a local magazine and also writes for her church’s newsletter. Born in Birmingham, Alabama, she graduated from high school in Mobile and from the University of Alabama where she studied American short stories and psychology. She now lives in a Southern town with her thirteen-year-old dog.

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    Goodwin Girls - Diana Craig Bibb

    Chapter 1

    It had been three years since Olivia Crenshaw’s mentor and partner had decided to take an early retirement, and she assumed sole ownership of the practice. She remembered that day as though it was yesterday. She had arrived at the office as usual, not expecting any surprises. When she opened the office door, she was met with floating balloons and Surprise! from an ensemble of voices.

    What’s going on? she asked. As she surveyed the room, she saw the familiar faces of friends and colleagues and a couple of her sorority sisters. Suddenly, stepping from the crowd of well-wishers was her mentor and partner, Dr. Suthernworth, accompanied by her family. Her mom and dad were beaming with pride. Her two brothers – Jimmy, who was the youngest, and Frank, Jr. – bowed and saluted her in their usual childhood comical manner. Then, Dr. Suthernworth began to speak.

    Olivia, he said. It’s time for you to take your rightful place as I take mine in a rocking chair on the front porch of Suthernworth Manor. Olivia was near the point of tears but managed to utter a response. Thank you, Dr. Suthernworth. It’s been both an honor and pleasure to work with you.

    She remembered visiting Suthernworth Manor. That was her first lesson in Southern history. The Suthernworth family had owned a plantation and, to her chagrin, had owned slaves as well. She thought it odd that Dr. Suthernworth never apologized for his family’s participation in the slave trade. As Olivia had grown to admire him as both a professor of psychology and partner, she realized that his actions spoke louder then any words could.

    After Dr. Suthernworth’s speech, her dad stepped forward to speak, but her mom spoke first. Let’s save our comments ‘til later, Frank. Dr. Crenshaw has a business to run.

    Her dad smiled at his wife and said, You’re right, dear. Olivia watched his downcast eyes. That’s the way he looked when her mom scolded him in public.

    Go ahead, Dad, Olivia said. At least say hello to everyone. He went on to praise his little girl while her mom smirked in the background. Frank winked at his daughter. That was his way of saying thank you whenever she rescued him. A couple of her colleagues also wished her well in her new role as sole proprietor. Her brothers decided they’d wait and roast her later at the family dinner. Her sorority sisters had planned a social hour following the family dinner. With her busy schedule, it had been a while since she’d participated in any sorority events, so she was looking forward to an evening out with the girls.

    Before the end of the festive occasion, Dr. Suthernworth handed Olivia a check, and he announced, This is the last check that I’ll sign as senior partner. He handed Olivia a gold pen and said, It’s all yours now. After the party, business in the office resumed as the clients began to arrive for their appointments.

    By the end of the day, the name on the door had been changed. Olivia was still excited as she rushed to meet her family for dinner. Since all the family members lived in different states, it was difficult to coordinate family gatherings. They managed to get together at least a few times during the year. She and her brothers would meet at their parents’ home in Chicago.

    As she entered the restaurant, she noticed her family right away. The chatter at the table was nonstop as everyone caught up on each other’s news. Before their dinner arrived, her dad lifted his glass for a toast, To our daughter and sister: we salute you and congratulate you on your accomplishments! Everyone applauded. Her brothers gave her what was referred to as the Crenshaw cheer! Her mom embraced her and said, Your grandparents are looking down from Heaven and smiling. Olivia’s eyes filled with tears as she looked around at her family.

    When dinner was over, she said goodbye to the family because all of them had early flights out the next morning. She made a point of having some private words with her dad because he had not been feeling well, and she wanted to make sure he was doing alright. After speaking with him, she entered the lounge where her sorority usually met, and her sisters greeted her with their sorority chant which confirmed she was one of them. As they listened to a pianist play their favorite tunes, those who were not asked to dance by a male simply danced with each other. Olivia had a wonderful time as she always did with her sorors. By the time she arrived home, she was exhausted, but not ready to retire for the evening. Apparently though, her body felt differently. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

    The next morning, Olivia had a meeting with her accountant to develop a business plan for her company and personal finances. The financial arrangement with her retired partner had left the business’ cash reserve low. However, Olivia felt she had negotiated a good settlement. As sole owner of the business, all future earnings would be hers alone.

    During the next few months, her client list grew as fast as her receptionist could schedule appointments. This was due in part to Olivia’s decision to expand the scope of her practice. Not only did she treat individual emotional concerns and couples’ relationship issues, but she also provided companies and school systems with the benefit of her behavior counseling expertise. She had seriously considered bringing in a partner to share the load, but for the time being she would bear the burden herself.

    There were times at the end of the day when Olivia was so exhausted that she wondered if she was in control of her life or her destiny. It was as though some outside force was directing the path that had brought her to this point. And she had not been able to get around it. The outside force that was driving her wasn’t from outside at all; it was tantamount to a self-fulfilling prophesy. Growing up in Chicago and then attending college on the East Coast, she had never seriously considered working in a small Southern town.

    Her thoughts returned to her life as a child growing up around her grandmother. Unlike most grandchildren during visits to their grandparents’ home, she and her brothers were confused by their grandmother’s behavior. Her grandfather, on the other hand, was the joy of her life; second only to her father.

    Whenever the family visited her grandparents, her grandfather would greet them at the door filled with excitement. (They would find their grandmother sitting on the back porch with her eyes fixed on the old oak tree in the backyard.)

    Once while throwing rocks up into the tree, her brothers unknowingly hit a bird’s nest and it fell to the ground.

    Oh man, you’re in trouble now, Frank, Jr. said.

    What do you mean I’m in trouble? Your rock knocked it out of the tree, and you yelled bull’s eye, Jimmy replied.

    Grandma’s going to kill us. You know how much she loves watching that nest.

    Kill you, you mean.

    Olivia watched and listened from the back porch. She always enjoyed listening to her brothers’ conversations. Sometimes she’d even interrupt to correct their grammar.

    Hey, you bad little boys! she yelled. I’ll take care of your little problem, but both of you’ll owe me big time!

    What are you going to tell her? Jimmy asked.

    I don’t know, Olivia answered. Maybe I’ll just tell her the wind blew it out of the tree. Olivia never told her brothers what she’d said to their grandmother. But whatever Olivia told her upset her so much that she had to be taken to the hospital and sedated to calm her down.

    As a young child, Olivia thought they were playing a game when her grandmother called her Rubee and proceeded to carry on a conversation with an invisible man named Henry. Whenever she’d ask about Henry, her grandmother would gently pat her chest over her heart and not say a word. When she mentioned her grandmother’s behavior to her parents and grandfather, they would tell her that her grandmother often visited a secret place in her mind. After repeated conversations with her grandmother, Olivia seemed to get into the game in a way that may not have been emotionally healthy.

    As time passed, she would seek out her grandmother, Mercedes, so they could play the game. She began to read about other people who played the same games that her grandmother played. She became intrigued with the human mind and how it worked. Of course, she grew closer to her grandmother as she learned more about the psychological nature of her illness. She began to ask her grandmother questions about living down South and about the school that she attended. It had been built at the end of the Civil War by a group of colored Union soldiers. It was located near a river and hidden by a grove of oak trees. But it was as though her questions fell on deaf ears, because her grandmother never responded.

    In an attempt to help her grandmother, Olivia began to mimic Mercedes’ behavior and was unaware that she was endangering her own sanity and losing touch with reality. Olivia was unable to distinguish between what was real and what was fantasy. She didn’t realize that she had become an enabler to her grandmother’s mental and emotional problems. Unknowingly, Olivia assimilated the personality of her Grandmother’s friends (based on Mercedes’ conversations with them) into her own. The game had become real to her. Her parents noticed the change in Olivia’s personality, and as a result, kept her away from her grandmother.

    It was unfortunate that Olivia never had another opportunity to speak with her grandmother. By the time it was her senior year, she was busy enjoying the last semester of high school and applying to colleges. Her grandmother died suddenly from a stroke a month following Olivia’s high school graduation. Her grandfather passed away six months later. Olivia never had the opportunity to share with them that she was planning to study psychiatry and psychology in college.

    Shortly after her grandparents’ deaths, Olivia helped her mom remove things from their home. Some items were given to family members, and others were donated to charity. While her mom packed dishes in the kitchen, Olivia went up to the attic. Her mom had told her that clearing the attic was Olivia’s project. As she turned the knob on the attic door, it seemed to be jammed, so she pushed hard on the door with her shoulder. The door flew open, and she tripped over a box near the doorway. She heard her mom’s voice from the kitchen, What’s going on up there, Olivia? Are you okay? As she began to lift herself from the floor, she felt a sudden chill as a breeze of cold air brushed past her.

    Everything’s okay, Mom, she answered. I tripped over a box. Her analytical nature took over as she reasoned, This room has been closed up for years. The air pressure must have built up and was released when the door opened abruptly.

    Olivia returned her attention to the box which was wrapped in an old quilt. The pattern appeared to be trees embroidered in each of the patch squares. She had not seen that quilt since she was a small child. She recalled a conversation with her grandmother when she asked inquisitively, Why do all the pictures on the quilt have the same tree, Grandma, and what’s that spot on each limb? She remembered the answer that Mercedes gave, It’s a bird’s nest, dear.

    Olivia removed the quilt carefully from around the box so as not to tear the ragged patterns. Beneath one of the folds was a flat tin. As she reached for it, she saw a nest of baby mice that startled her at first; but seeing how helpless they were, she gently laid the quilt aside. She’d leave the task of disposing of the quilt for Jimmy and Frank, Jr. She’d love to see the expressions on their faces when they discovered the baby mice. She sat comfortably on the floor with her legs crossed Indian-style and read the name written across the top of the box: Mercedes Mitchell. When she opened the box, she was surprised to find it only contained a stack of letters bound with a faded yellow ribbon. The mere act of untying the ribbon caused the tattered papers to fall apart in crumples. One lone item that survived was a framed picture of a young couple holding hands at Niagara Falls.

    As Olivia examined the photo, she felt like she was looking in the mirror. Her resemblance to the woman in the picture was uncanny. She knew right away that the young woman was her grandmother Mercedes. But she didn’t recognize the young man in the picture. She did know, however, that it wasn’t her grandfather. She removed the picture from beneath the glass and placed it in her pocket. When she opened the flat tin, she discovered her grandmother’s diary. Olivia felt she should keep this discovery to herself. There were only a few things that she could carry down the stairs, so she left the heavy items, including the old quilt, for her brothers. She thought to herself that her brothers would say she left the hard work for them.

    By the time her grandparents’ house had been emptied and their furniture sold or given away, Olivia was leaving for college. Her first semester proved to be very difficult. Her mother had given her a book explaining the effects of the death of a close relative that helped to answer some of her questions and clear up some doubts. She would have to figure out the rest on her own.

    Chapter 2

    During her

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