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Elward by Judy Spikes

I was fourteen years old, when I first met him. His name was Elward, and he was my future husband's uncle not by blood, but by marriage.

Elward was at least in his mid forties at the time. He was crippled, and instead of using a wheel chair, he would sit in a large, red wagon. It was not like a child's wagon, but was much more heavy-duty, and much larger. Still, his shriveled legs, and bloated feet looked uncomfortable, as he sat there, all day long.

When he was just a teenager, he was hunting on horseback, and had an accident. In this weakened state, he contracted polio, which added to his health problems. This was in the early forties, as close as I can figure, and at that time, the medical community just did not have the knowledge, that we have today.

I do not think he received much therapy, but my husband said that Elward balked at what the doctor had tried to do for him. From then on, Elward was trapped inside a body that no longer functioned correctly.

At some point in his life, Elward had become a Christian. All the twenty-some-odd years that I knew him, he never once complained about what life had dealt him. He always had a smile on his face, a funny story to share, or some words of wisdom from his spiritual "walk" in life.

Elward liked to play jokes on the family as well. One night, before we were married, my husband had been out late. His bed was in the same room as Elward's was. While he was out, his older brother's wife had came over to spend the night. The only bed available was my husbands, so she snuggled into it and went to sleep. Elward was supposed to let my husband know, that he would have to share a bed with him that night.

When my husband came home, he did not turn the bedroom light on, not wanting to disturb Elward. As he shucked off his clothes, Elward pretended to sleep, all the while shaking with suppressed laughter. My husband lay down in the bed, and the first thing he knew, his hand was laying on a head full of curlers. He jerked his hand back and cried, "Curlers, who has curlers on in my bed?"

"That's your sister-in-law", Elward said, "She has come to spend the night." he explained, laughing all the while. "You are supposed to sleep with me," he added. We all had a good laugh over little joke of his for years.

I remember when my husband and I were dating, sometimes Elward would go along with us to the river, to watch us frolic and play, while sitting in the front seat of the 1959 Chevy we rode in. He would have such a good time, simply because he was included, and had an opportunity to ride in the car, seeing all the sights as we whizzed down the road.

After we married, Elward would come to stay a week or two with us from time to time. On my husband's day off from work, he would sometimes pack Elward into our car, and drive for miles and miles, letting Elward see all the sights along the road. Back then, there were no seat belts, so if my husband took a curve a bit fast, he would say, "Hold on uncle Elward", both of them laughing as my husband put his arm across Elward's chest to keep him in the seat.

I can remember during that time, my daughter was about two years old. She had gotten a small, red wagon for Christmas. Seeing Elward sitting in his, she would climb into hers, and sit just as still and patient, thinking that was how her Uncle Elward liked to play.

Elward was confined is this way for many years, but he lived his life to the fullest. Sitting in that red wagon, he learned more than most people do, while rambling along life's pathway. Through the years, he and I grew to love and respect each other. When he passed away, I did not mourn, but I rejoiced, for I knew he was in a better place, a place that he could not only walk, but also run and leap for joy!

Judy Spikes Copyright 2003 [email protected]

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