She was born without legs in a time when such people were institutionalized or worse, but she avoided that fate. They said she’d never walk; instead, she soared.
A fictional account of a girl born over a century ago who, with love and support from her family and friends, defies a culture where disability is considered shameful and disabled people are marginalized, openly discriminated against, and even treated as less than human.
Part 4 includes the following chapters:
Chapter 10 – Emulating Millie, part 1
Chapter 9 – Romancing Millie
As he made his way to the kitchen, Dick had to think fast about where he might take Millie on a date. Her being in a wheelchair and most places not being wheelchair friendly limited his options. In the kitchen, Millie was sitting on a high stool and washing dishes and Henry was drying them. Millie looked over her shoulder and saw him enter the room. “Oh, hi, Dickie,” she said cheerfully. “I’m not sure where Fannie is. Henry, would you go find her and tell her Dickie’s here?”
“No need, Henry,” Dick told him. “Instead, why don’t you hand me that towel and beat it. I’ll take over drying for you.” No one had to tell Henry twice that they’d do his chores for him. He exchanged a glance with Millie and left the room.
“What can I do for you, Dickie?” Millie asked him as she handed him a clean dish. She assumed he wanted to talk to her about Fannie.
“You can go see a movie with me,” Dick said. He immediately thought that had to be the worst request for a date he’d ever heard.
Millie frowned. “I don’t understand,” she told him.
“I’m sorry. Let me start over. Millie, would you go out with me to see a movie this weekend? Friday evening if you’re free.”
Millie was still confused, and her face showed it. “It sounds like you’re asking me on a date.”
“I am,” he replied with a big smile.
“I’m sorry, Dickie, but I can’t do that to my sister. I hope you understand.”
Dick now understood her seeming reluctance. “You needn’t worry about Fannie; I just spoke with her, and she’s all for me asking you out. In fact, she encouraged me to do it.”
“Okay, now I’m really confused,” admitted Millie. “I thought you were interested in Fannie. Are you saying you’re not anymore? And she’s not interested in you, either?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying,” Dick replied. “Fannie and I went out one time. There just wasn’t any spark there, and we both realized it.”
“And she put you up to this? Asking me out, I mean.” Millie asked, still trying to understand what was going on. She didn’t want Dickie to take her on a pity date because he’d been pressured into it. She didn’t want to be anyone’s charity case.
“No, that’s not it at all,” Dick tried to explain. “It was completely my idea. I told Fannie that I wanted to do that, to make sure she wasn’t going to be jealous or anything. She was wholeheartedly in favor. Frankly, Millie, I should have asked you out instead of Fannie in the first place. I should have listened to my heart.”
Now Millie finally understood, and Dick could see that, because her expression and demeanor completely changed. She broke out into a big smile. “Well, in that case, yes! I’d love to go out with you, Dickie!” Then she frowned again. “But I don’t think I’ll be able to get my wheelchair into the theater. It’s awfully tight quarters if I recall.”
“I’m way ahead of you,” Dick replied. “I was going to borrow my dad’s car and take you to a drive-in movie.”
“That’s a brilliant idea, Dickie,” she said, smiling again. “Friday evening is fine. What time should I be ready?”
Dick told her the time, finished drying the dishes, and departed. Millie was on cloud nine. She was going on a date with a guy she adored in just a few days! She was 21 years old and this would be her very first date ever. Crippled girls didn’t get asked out much, and being homeschooled, she never got to interact with many of her peers.
Almost as soon as Dick left, Fannie burst into the kitchen, grinning from ear to ear. “Did you say yes?” she eagerly asked her sister.
“I did!” said Millie excitedly, wearing an equally large grin.
Fannie hugged Millie as the two young women both squealed with delight.
Friday evening, Millie was a jumble of conflicting emotions as she got ready for her date. She was excited; thrilled even, but also very nervous. Not nervous because of any concerns she had about Dickie, but simply because she was in uncharted territory. Fannie tried to calm her down as she helped her sister pick out something to wear and fix up her hair and makeup.
The movie didn’t really hold either of their interests, but then, they really hadn’t come to be entertained by a movie anyway. They’d come to be in each other’s company. They mostly ignored the movie and spent the time talking about seemingly everything under the sun.
After the movie, Dick then took Millie to a drive-in restaurant. As they waited for their order, she looked around at all of the other couples sitting in their cars; some eating, some talking, some making out. Millie couldn’t recall ever feeling so normal. Her missing legs mattered not one bit here. She was just a girl on a date, like all of the other girls in the other cars.
Just then, a couple came out from the restaurant and headed in their direction. The guy noticed Dick’s father’s car and recognized Dick sitting behind the wheel, and his face lit up. They came up to the driver’s window, and the guy said to Dick, “Hey, Gardner, glad to see you got back from the war in one piece. Who’s your date?”
Dick replied, “You, too, Tucker. This is Millie Duncan.”
“She related to Jack and Fannie?”
Millie answered before Dick could. “Yes, I’m their kid sister.”
Tucker replied, “Nice to meet you, Millie. I didn’t know they had a sister.” Then his expression turned serious. “It’s a real shame about Jack. He was a swell guy.”
“Thank you,” replied Millie. “I think so, too.”
“You remember Irene, right?” Tucker asked Dick as he gestured toward his date.
“Yeah,” Dick replied. “Hi, Irene.” Irene waved to Dick, and then she and Millie waved to each other.
“Well, you kids have fun, but not too much fun,” Tucker said to them as he winked. “See ya ‘round.”
“See ya, Tuck,” Dick replied.
Millie realized that Tucker and Irene apparently hadn’t even noticed that she didn’t have legs, or that there was a folded wheelchair behind her seat. If they’d noticed, they sure didn’t show it. She marveled at how normal this made her feel.
Dick drove her home, got her wheelchair out of the back seat and unfolded it, helped her get in it, and pushed her up the ramp to the back door of her house. Millie turned her chair around to face him. She looked up at him and said, “Dickie, thank you so much for a wonderful evening. I enjoyed every minute of it. I hope we can do this again sometime soon.”
“I enjoyed it just as much, Millie,” Dick replied. “You’re really easy to talk to and fun to be with, and I look forward to our next date. In fact, let’s plan on going out again a week from now, next Friday evening, if that’s okay. I’ll let you know what and when once I figure it out.”
“That’s perfect,” she said in response. “If you haven’t noticed, the boys aren’t exactly beating a path to my door, so I’m free pretty much all the time.”
“Their loss,” Dick remarked. “Would it be all right if I kissed you goodnight?”
“I was counting on it,” Millie replied. “I would consider the date a failure if you didn’t.”
Dick squatted down to get to her level, but Millie had other ideas. “Not down here. Pick me up, like you did the first time we kissed.” Dick did as she requested, and Millie immediately wrapped her arms around him. She didn’t wait for him to start kissing her; she took the initiative and came in with an open mouth, pushing her tongue into his mouth. Dick offered no resistance, but instead reciprocated with his own tongue.
Their goodnight kiss lasted a good five minutes. When they came up for air, Millie looked him in the eyes and said, “That was nice, Dickie.”
“Yes it was,” agreed Dick. “Very nice.”
That night, Millie lay in bed thinking about the evening and about Dickie in general. She knew they’d only been on one date, and had kissed twice, but knew she was rapidly falling head-over-heels in love. Well, she would have been if she’d had heels, but you get the idea.
Inexperienced at dating as she was, Millie was no teenybopper. She was mature enough to understand the difference between being in love with a person and being in love with being in love. She knew she had to really search her heart to try to discern which she was experiencing, because unless it were the former, she knew there would be problems.
Dick also lay awake thinking about the evening and Millie in general. He had to admit, he felt the spark that was absent when he’d gone out with Fannie. Her eagerness to kiss him passionately was a good sign she felt the spark, too. He was proud to be seen with her at the drive-in restaurant, but no one had noticed she was a cripple. Would he have felt differently if they had? Would he have felt differently if people stared at her or made rude remarks? He liked to think he wouldn’t have, but in reality he wasn’t so sure.
He needed to know. Next time he needed to take her somewhere where they’d be seen and it was obvious she was a cripple. On the other hand, it occurred to him that they couldn’t just show up somewhere and expect not to have any problems. It wasn’t an issue on their first date because she never had to get out of the car. But Dick knew, from hearing the Duncans talk about it over the years and from his own observations, that wheelchairs and public places frequently were physically incompatible. He’d have to scout out any place he wanted to take her in advance so as not to embarrass her as well as himself during the date.
He decided he should try to take her out to dinner at a nice restaurant. He had one in mind, so the next day he went there in person to check it out. He saw that if he could get a spot in their parking lot, or street parking on the block where the restaurant was located, he should be okay getting her from the car to the building. Otherwise, he’d have to get the wheelchair up and down curbs or find driveways and jaywalk across the street between corners. Those were not insurmountable obstacles, but it was good to anticipate them and have a plan.
The entrance to the restaurant was level with the sidewalk, so that wasn’t an issue. He wondered whether their door was wide enough for a wheelchair – he should have brought a tape measure with him. He went inside and looked around. It didn’t look like there was enough space between the tables to navigate a wheelchair, but maybe if they could get a table near the front door it would work.
The maître d’ returned to his station and asked, “How many in your party, sir?”
Dick replied, “Oh, I’m sorry; I’m not here to eat, at least not yet. I’m just doing some advance scouting for a date this Friday evening.”
“Would you like to make a reservation for Friday evening, then, sir?” the maître d’ asked.
“Well, it depends on a couple of things,” Dick replied. “You see, the girl I’ll be bringing uses a wheelchair. First, I’m wondering if you know how wide your front entrance is. I forgot to bring a tape measure with me, but I want to make sure she can get into the building. Second, I need to know whether we can be seated at one of these tables right by the door here. I can see her wheelchair isn’t going to fit down the aisles between the tables.”
“Sir, I’m afraid we won’t be able to accommodate your young lady here,” said the maître d’. “We don’t admit diners with obvious physical defects. It’s upsetting to the other patrons to have to see such people while they’re trying to enjoy their meals.”
Dick couldn’t believe his ears. “It’s not like she’s all scarred up or anything. She’s a beautiful young woman, a real dish; she just needs wheels to get around. Once she gets to her table, the other patrons won’t even notice.”
“I’m sure she is beautiful, sir,” the man replied, trying to not offend Dick any more than necessary. “Nevertheless, our policy is to not admit people such as your lady friend. I’m sorry sir; you’ll just have to take her elsewhere, I’m afraid.”
Dick was incensed, but he could see he wasn’t going to win this argument. Maybe he could bribe the guy to let them in, but at this point he didn’t even want to give them his business, let alone anything extra. He was glad he came in advance and asked questions. He and Millie would have both been humiliated if they’d just shown up and were turned away.
“Just so you know,” Dick told the maître d’, “I’ll never set foot in this place again, no matter who I’m with. I’m going to tell everyone I know to do the same, and why, and I’ll ask them to tell everyone they know as well.” He lowered his voice. “According to your policy, you’d actually turn away a disabled vet, who sacrificed his own body so that your sorry ass could have the freedom to treat him like shit. You should be ashamed of yourselves, you and whoever else runs this dive.”
Dick was so angry he couldn’t think straight. It was one thing if the restaurant couldn’t physically accommodate a person in a wheelchair, but for them to just arbitrarily refuse to serve her was highly offensive. He thought about trying another restaurant, but in his current mental state, he knew that was a bad idea. If he got the same treatment at the next place, there was no telling what he might do.
Later, after he’d cooled down some, he thought about what had happened and how he’d reacted to it. It dawned on him that he was taking it personally that the restaurant was refusing to serve Millie, even though they had nothing against him. He pondered that some more. Even though she wasn’t physically there, he’d confronted someone who was giving her a hard time about her disability. Her condition didn’t embarrass him; it emboldened him. He was proud to be her date, and without giving it a second thought he’d done what came naturally – he came to her defense, unsuccessful as he may have been.
He realized he didn’t need to take her on a date where her disability would be on full display to know how he felt about her. He already knew from that confrontation with the maître d’. But he still wanted to do that; he wanted her to know that he wasn’t embarrassed to be seen with her in public.
After that, Dick went back out and tried another restaurant, this time remembering to bring a tape measure. He was calm now, and half expected the same answer as the first one, so when he got that answer, he gave them a piece of his mind in a cool, collected manner and then just moved down his list to the next place. That one had steps that were going to be a problem. After visiting several more, he found one that was sufficiently accessible and wouldn’t turn Millie away, and he made a reservation for Friday evening. He noticed that this restaurant had an adjoining bar that was equally accessible.
When they arrived, that maître d’ looked Millie up and down, but said nothing to discourage them, and showed them to their table. On the way, Millie definitely turned some heads, but the other diners just as quickly turned their attention back to their companions and their meals. They’d noticed her but didn’t seem to object to her being there. That was to be expected and didn’t bother either of them. Dick wondered why some of the other restaurants seemed to think her presence would upset their other customers.
Millie had never been to such a fancy restaurant before. She whispered to Dick that this was much too fancy of a place and that he didn’t need to spend this kind of money on her. He whispered back that they were already seated, and if they left now it would cause a scene. Besides, he told her, it was his prerogative to decide how much to spend on her, and he’d checked this place out in advance and knew what he was getting into.
As Dick had predicted, patrons who were seated after them didn’t even notice anything about Millie. The two enjoyed an intimate, elegant meal together, but even more, each other’s company and conversation. Millie was disappointed when the meal was over, Dick had paid, and he got up. She didn’t want the magic to end. It never occurred to her that it wasn’t ending; she assumed he’d blown his whole wad on their obviously expensive dinners.
But to her pleasant surprise, he wheeled her into the adjacent bar rather than out the door. The magic wasn’t ending just yet.
Millie had very little experience with alcohol; her parents weren’t teetotalers, but her father pretty much stuck to beer at home, which smelled disgusting to Millie, and her mother only drank on special occasions. She’d never seen either of them intoxicated. Neither she nor her siblings, as far as she knew, had ever touched the stuff, and it was only several months ago that she’d even reached the legal age.
“I don’t know what to order,” she admitted to Dick. “I’ve never done this before.”
“Have you ever had alcohol at all?” he asked her. She responded negatively. Dick mentally smacked his own head. He should have known this about her, or asked, before he brought her to a bar. “Well, there’s no telling what you’re going to like or dislike until you try it. But for a first drink, I’d suggest a dessert wine.” These were sweet wines that were popular with women.
“You order something for me, please,” Millie said to her date.
“All right, but let me caution you. You can’t drink alcohol like Kool-Aid. You have to just sip it sparingly or you’ll get plastered. That’s probably going to be more of a concern for you than most women, since you weigh so little due to your missing legs.”
A waiter came and took their orders. He then said to her, “Miss, I’ll have to see some identification with your birthdate on it to verify you’re at least 21.”
Millie was caught by surprise. “I am 21, but the only IDs I have are a Social Security card and a library card. I don’t have a driver’s license.” She pushed herself back from the table so the waiter could see her missing legs. “Obviously, I can’t drive.” This caught the attention of the people at the table next to them, and they turned to see.
Now Dick was now even more regretful about bringing her here. He was embarrassed for her sake. He didn’t even think about them carding her or her not having a driver’s license.
“May I just get a… a soft drink instead?” Millie asked the waiter. She’d almost said ‘pop’, but that sounded so childish. ‘Soft drink’ sounded so much more classy. “Do you have Coca-Cola?” He confirmed that she could and they did, and went to fill their order.
Then, a woman at the next table turned to them. “Excuse me; I couldn’t help overhearing. You know, you probably can drive a car,” she said to Millie. “You know FDR* had polio and used a wheelchair, right?” Millie had heard that, and she nodded her head. The woman continued. “Did you know he drove a car despite not having use of his legs? I saw a newsreel once where he was doing that. I heard his car was fitted with hand controls that took the place of the pedals.”
* Franklin Delano Roosevelt, U.S. president during most of the Great Depression and World War II
Millie didn’t know that about President Roosevelt, and had never heard of hand controls. She thanked the woman for telling her that. She’d have to ask her father about it.
“Oh, and by the way, thank you for your sacrifice. It must have been devastating, going through that,” the woman added. Millie didn’t know what she was talking about, and that showed on her face. Did she somehow know Jackie? “Your legs,” the woman clarified. “I assume you were an Army nurse or a WAC* and lost them in the war.”
* Women’s Army Corps, or a member of this unit
“Oh, no,” replied Millie, now understanding the confusion. “I was born this way. But I did lose a brother in the war, so thank you.” Both were embarrassed now and didn’t know what to say, so they each smiled and turned their attention back to their respective companions.
“You handled that well,” Dick said as he leaned in close so as not to be overheard.
“Thanks,” replied Millie. “I know she meant well. I suppose I am going to be mistaken for a disabled woman veteran from now on.”
“Women weren’t allowed anywhere near the front lines, but I guess not everyone knows that,” observed Dick.
The rest of the evening was uneventful but pleasant as Millie and Dick resumed talking about everything under the sun. Knowing that she wasn’t fond of the smell of beer, he drank cocktails instead, but limited himself to only two over the course of three hours. Then he drove her to a spot he knew that overlooked Lake Erie. It was night, of course, but the moon was close to being full, and they could see the silhouettes and lights of ships that passed by.
Dick turned to Millie, held both of her hands, and looked her in the eyes. “Millie, I know we’ve only been on two dates, but it’s not like we’re strangers or anything. You’ve always had a special place in my heart. But ever since I got back from the war, I can’t get you off of my mind. I’ve become really keen on you, and I don’t want to go out with anyone else. So I have to ask, would you consider being my steady girl? You don’t have to answer right away; you can think…”
Millie cut him off. She’d heard all she needed to hear. “Yes!” she said enthusiastically.
“Yes, you’ll go steady with me?” Dick asked, not sure of what she had just agreed to.
“Yes, I’ll go steady with you, you dimwit,” Millie replied with a smile.
“That sure didn’t take long to decide,” Dick remarked.
“Are you complaining? Should I take it back and go think about it for a few days?” she asked rhetorically. “Dickie Gardner, you’re not the only one who can’t get someone off their mind and is really keen on them, you know. Ever since we kissed on V-J Day*, I’ve been dreaming of this. You’ve just made my dream come true!”
*Victory in Japan Day
The two then both leaned in for their first kiss as an official couple.
Chapter 10 – Emulating Millie, part 1
Dick and Millie were both on cloud nine now that they were in a steady relationship with each other. Dick was now at the Duncans’ house seemingly more often than not during evenings and weekends. Everyone they saw elsewhere, such as at their respective workplaces, noticed and remarked about how happy they’d each become.
Dick began attending the Duncans’ church so he could be with Millie that much more. His family were members of a church in a different but compatible denomination so there were few differences between the two churches. He could see why Millie would never want to go anywhere else, since the church had been made pretty much completely wheelchair accessible in order to accommodate her. He’d never heard of another church that had done that.
Now that more and more veterans were home from the war, a few disabled vets had also begun attending the Duncans’ church, likely drawn there from their weekly newspaper ad that mentioned they were wheelchair accessible. None of them could navigate steps, but some used crutches to get around. One such vet had lost both legs and was in a wheelchair, and began sitting near the Duncans since they sat where a section of a pew had been removed to provide a place for wheelchair users.
The Duncan family as well as Dick got to know this man better as the weeks went by. His name was Stan Larsen and he’d been a Marine fighting on the island of Saipan when his buddy stepped onto a Japanese landmine, killing him, and blowing off Stan’s legs from just above the knees down. Dick and Stan developed an unspoken bond, having both seen combat and each losing their best friend in the war.
Stan drew inspiration from Millie and how she refused to let her disability limit her if it could possibly be helped. Millie had a job she could easily do from a wheelchair as well as a beau who didn’t seem to mind her missing legs. She’d been legless her entire life and yet she was clearly thriving. Being around her made Stan feel that perhaps his own situation wasn’t as bad as he’d been making it out to be.
Dick and Stan began spending time together. Usually they’d go out and have a few beers once or twice a week, either at the local VFW* hall or at a bar that could accommodate a wheelchair user. Stan appreciated that Dick was experienced at being around someone without legs. Dick was able to teach him a lot about which businesses were friendly or hostile towards disabled people, give practical tips about how to navigate obstacles, and offer suggestions about how to deal with stares and rude remarks.
* Veterans of Foreign Wars, a fraternal organization
Eventually they got around to talking about Dick’s relationship with Millie. Stan was interested in understanding how Dick could even be attracted to someone with no legs, let alone acting on it and actually getting into a relationship with such a person. He knew he’d need to find a female equivalent to Dick if he were not going to remain a bachelor for life.
“I’m not attracted to Millie because she’s legless,” Dick explained. “That would be sick. I’m just attracted to Millie, period, and she happens to be legless. It’s really no different than being attracted to a girl who’s nearsighted and has to wear glasses, for example. The glasses, or the lack of legs, are part of who she is but they don’t define her.
“I suppose she has some attributes resulting from her disability that make her attractive – her determination, for example – but that’s not the same as the disability itself being attractive.”
“Okay,” allowed Stan, “but how is it that you didn’t find her disability so repulsive that you wouldn’t even consider going out with her?” This was really where he was struggling. What girl wouldn’t find him repulsive? “Most guys wouldn’t even consider her, no matter how pretty and charming she is.”
“Good question,” Dick admitted. “I suppose it’s because I’ve known Millie since I met her brother Jack in the third grade. I’m used to being around her, and her missing legs just aren’t a big deal to me. I’ve come to see her as a person, not a cripple.”
Dick understood the underlying reason for Stan’s questions about how he could overlook Millie’s disability. He thought about it for a minute. Then he said to Stan, “You know, something just occurred to me. Fannie and Alice are both used to being around someone with no legs, too. I bet neither of them would find you repulsive. You should think about asking one of them out.”
Stan hadn’t considered that, but Dick had a point. “How old are they?” he asked.
“Let’s see… Fannie is 23 and Alice is 19, almost 20,” Dick replied. “How old are you?”
“I’m 22,” Stan replied.
“I suppose you can take your pick, then,” Dick replied. “If you ever want to double date with Millie and me, we’d love to have you along.”
“Thanks,” replied Stan. “That was a really good suggestion. I guess I have some thinking to do now.”
Stan thought more about Fannie and Alice. He barely knew either of them, and only from having sat near them in church. He thought Fannie was slightly prettier than Alice, but he liked that Alice was younger than him. Fannie, though, being older, might be less picky about who she dated. He decided he needed to spend more time observing them in church to see if anything tipped the scales one way or the other.
Dick, however, had an idea of his own. He decided to get Millie involved without completely tipping his hand as to what he was doing. “So, Millie… As you know, I’ve been spending time with Stan, and as I’m sure you can imagine, he’s struggling with not having legs any more. He’s pretty discouraged. I think it would do him some good if he could spend time with you and your family, so he can see that being legless isn’t the end of the world and be among people who’ll treat him like a normal person instead of an object of pity. Besides, your house is already equipped to accommodate a wheelchair user. Do you think maybe you could arrange to have your parents invite him to dinner sometime?”
“I can’t imagine they’d have any objections,” Millie replied. “I’ll talk to them about it.”
Millie spoke to her parents and passed on Dick’s request. They completely understood and were more than willing to invite Stan to dinner at their next opportunity. Millie passed their response back to Dick. That Sunday at church, John greeted Stan and shook his hand. He then said, “Stan, we’d like to invite you to join us for dinner sometime. Today, if you’re free, but otherwise, you just let us know when is a good time for you.”
“That’s very hospitable of you, Mr. Duncan,” Stan replied. “I’d love to join you for dinner, and yes, I’m free today, sir.”
Dinner was going to be at 6 pm, so Stan went home after church, and couldn’t keep from grinning ear-to-ear. This would be a perfect opportunity to interact with Fannie and Alice and get to know them better. He wondered whether Dick had anything to do with this. He’d have to ask him the next time they were alone together.
Stan had a car equipped with hand controls and a collapsible metal wheelchair, both provided by the Veterans’ Administration, so he was able to get around independently. He didn’t know it, but his wheelchair frame was manufactured by the Duncan family business. A little before 6 pm, he pulled into the Duncans’ driveway, got into his chair and wheeled up the ramp to the back door and knocked. It was nice to be able to go somewhere and not have to worry about how he’d get up the steps or whether the door was wide enough for his chair.
John answered the door and welcomed Stan. He then said to him, “I saw that you drove yourself here. I assume your car has hand controls. Would you mind showing them to me and explaining how they work? Millie would probably like to see this as well.” Stan was agreeable, and John summoned Millie and the three of them went to look at his car.
“You see, this lever causes the gas pedal to be pressed, and this one causes the brake to be pressed. It’s really very simple, sir, and the car is able to also be driven normally by an able-bodied person.”
“How do you engage the clutch?” John asked. “I don’t see a lever for that, nor do I even see a pedal for that matter.”
“Oh, this car doesn’t need a clutch, sir. It has an automatic transmission. The car shifts gears itself, so I don’t even have to think about that at all.”
“An automatic transmission? Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! What’ll they think of next?” John remarked.
Already the gears were turning in John’s head. He could never figure out how a legless person would be able to work the gas, clutch, gearshift, and steering wheel all at the same time with only their hands. An automatic transmission eliminated the need to work the clutch and gearshift, and the levers for the gas and brake were very simple. He could easily make those himself now that he’d seen them.
“Millie, if we can find another one of these automatic transmission cars, I don’t see why I couldn’t rig up levers like Stan has so you can drive yourself around like he does. Think of the freedom you’d have, not having to depend on other people for rides!”
“That would be wonderful, Dad,” replied Millie, thinking of all the possibilities if she could drive a car.
“I don’t know how easy that’ll be, sir, at least right now,” cautioned Stan. “I think they’re all going to disabled vets. I had to go through the VA* to get this car. They didn’t give it to me; I had to buy it, but I don’t think I could’ve just gone to a dealer and gotten one on my own. Eventually, though, you ought to be able to do that, I’d think.”
* Veterans’ Administration, a U.S. government agency
“I understand,” replied John. “It’s the same way with metal folding wheelchairs right now.”
“Begging your pardon, sir; how does Millie have one of those, then?” Stan asked.
John and Millie both laughed at that question. “My company makes the metal frames for folding wheelchairs sold to the VA,” he explained. “Your chair has one of our frames; I recognize it. But Millie’s chair is the prototype for that design. I custom-made it for her before the war.”
Stan laughed, too. “Wow; I had no idea, sir. It sure is a small world, isn’t it?”
“That it is,” agreed John. “Well, shall we go inside?”
The dining room table was arranged with eight place settings, one at each end and three on each side, but only six chairs, with the middle place settings on each side obviously intended for the two in wheelchairs. Stan quickly realized that, assuming Dick and Millie were seated together, he’d be seated next to one of Millie’s sisters, if not both. He wasn’t sure if it would be better to be next to them or across from them, but it wasn’t his call to make anyway.
As it turned out, both Fannie and Alice were pleased to hear their father invite Stan to dinner. They’d both found him attractive, both physically and otherwise, despite his being a double amputee. As Dick had already concluded, neither of them were put off by his missing legs.
The two sisters only discovered they were rivals for his attention during the ride home from church that day, and neither of them liked it. Henry couldn’t stop laughing when he realized what was going on. He could only imagine the drama that would ensue at the dinner table that evening. John and Ruthie exchanged a glance that indicated to each other that they were worried about dinner going badly.
John laid down the law to his daughters. “We invited Stan to dinner at Dick’s request because he said Stan was struggling mentally and emotionally with being an amputee. Dick though it would do him good to see Millie not being limited by her missing legs, and to be among people who don’t think anything of someone not having legs. And so we – all of us – are going to do what we can to put Stan at ease and treat him like we would any other dinner guest.
“I don’t even want to see a hint of any bickering between you two about Stan, or flirting with him, or competing for his attention, or anything else like that. If you’re not acting like you would if the pastor was here for dinner, or one of your grandfathers, then it’s not going to go well for you. I won’t hesitate to embarrass you in front of him if you embarrass your mother and me with your behavior. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, sir,” the two sisters sheepishly said in unison.
“I’m not opposed to you making a positive impression our guest, but the way to do it is by being your normal charming selves,” John added.
“Yes, sir,” they said again.
And so the dinner proceeded without incident. Stan was incorrect about the seating arrangement; John and Ruthie had decided that the three sisters would sit on one side of the table, and the three young men on the other. This would provide physical separation between Fannie and Alice as well as between them and Stan, reducing the chances of anything getting out of hand. But Fannie and Alice knew better than to test their father, and they both stayed on their best behavior.
Millie and Dick weren’t happy that they weren’t seated together, but Ruthie took Millie aside and explained what had happened during the ride home from church. Dick had driven her home from church separately from the family so she hadn’t witnessed it.
Stan thoroughly enjoyed his time with the Duncan family. He didn’t realize how refreshing it was to be in a wheelchair accessible home among people who didn’t act weird because of his disability. He felt like he’d really hit it off with John, the girls’ father. He saw that Millie didn’t get any special treatment; she was expected to help in the kitchen as much as her sisters were, and that she had adaptations that enabled her to do that. For example, she had a tray that she attached to the armrests of her wheelchair so she could bring things between the kitchen and the dining room. Millie was just a normal member of the family, and somehow Stan found that encouraging. He felt like he’d been a normal dinner guest, too.
Then there were the two unattached sisters, Fannie and Alice. Stan appreciated being able to look across the table at them both. He found them both to be charming and gracious, and so, unfortunately, he was no closer to figuring out which one he preferred than before.
After Stan had left, Fannie and Alice were both claiming ‘dibs’ on Stan and were being quite antagonistic toward each other. Millie was forced to play the role of mediator between the two. “What makes you think he’s interested in either one of you?” she asked. “He’s got plenty on his mind already, having to adjust to losing his legs. If he saw how you were acting, he certainly wouldn’t be interested. And even if he is, it’s up to him to decide which of you to pursue. You don’t get a say in it. So both of you, back off and stop this!” After that dressing down, Fannie and Alice shifted to just giving each other the cold shoulder and refusing to speak to each other.
Millie spoke to Dick about her two sisters. “Ever since they found out Stan was coming to dinner, they’ve been squabbling over who has ‘dibs’ on him. They’re apparently both smitten with him. They’re behaving like a couple of schoolgirls.” Dick laughed at this. “It’s not funny, Dickie!” Millie protested. “The poor guy already has enough on his mind without having to put up with their antics, too!”
Dick continued laughing. “Actually, Millie, he already had both of them on his mind before the subject of dinner ever came up. He likes both of them and he’s having a hard time deciding which one he should ask out. I had an ulterior motive for getting him invited to dinner, and that was to give him an opportunity to interact with them. I thought maybe he’d develop a preference for one or the other.”
“And?” Millie asked, wanting him to continue.
“And he’s just as confused now as he was before. Neither of them did anything to either discourage him or to outshine the other.”
“What are we going to do about it, Dickie?” she asked.
“What can we do? Why should we do anything? This is their problem to figure out, not ours,” he replied. Millie didn’t like this answer, but she knew Dick was right and she dropped the matter.
The following Sunday, however, a new disabled vet in a wheelchair visited the church and wheeled to the same area where Millie and Stan were, where the pew section had been removed. Of course, the entire Duncan family said hello to him, but Dick and Stan both made a point of introducing themselves to the new guy and finding out a bit about him. They then invited him to join them at their weekly beer session.
The guy’s name was Fred Hoffmann; he was an Army officer who’d had a bullet lodged against his spine during the battle for Okinawa, paralyzing him from the waist down. Fred was a few years older than Dick and was handsome and charismatic. Fred and Stan remembered each other from their overlapping time in the VA hospital, though they never really interacted there. Fred had a much more positive attitude than Stan, seeming to take his injury in stride, so to speak.
Over beers later that week, Fred asked the other two, “So who were those two dishes sitting behind us in church? Frannie and Alice, I think they said their names were.”
Dick and Stan laughed. Dick answered. “Their names are Fannie and Alice Duncan; they’re sisters to each other as well as to my girl Millie, who’s the one in the wheelchair.”
“Anyone claimed them yet? Stan, you got dibs on one?” Fred asked.
Dick and Stan laughed even harder. “Poor Stan can’t make up his mind about which one he wants to ask out,” Dick explained, still laughing. That got Fred laughing, too.
“I hope you weren’t that indecisive on the battlefield, Marine,” Fred replied to Stan, only half kidding. “Not being able to decide which Jap to shoot first will get you killed in no time.”
“Hey, that’s not a fair comparison,” Stan protested. “Girls are much scarier than Jap soldiers.”
Fred laughed and replied, “Okay, I’ll concede that point. So you think these girls would go out with guys in wheelchairs?”
“I know for a fact that they would,” replied Dick, “if a guy in a wheelchair would only ask them.”
Fred starting asking questions about the Duncan sisters, and Dick and Stan filled him in. “It would seem that Fannie would be the better match for me,” he said after considering them both. “She’s much closer to my age and she’s going to college. Why don’t I take her and you take Alice, Stan? You wouldn’t feel like you were getting second choice, I hope.”
“No, I think they’re equally good choices; that’s why I can’t decide,” Stan replied. “I agree; Fannie makes more sense for you than Alice, so I’ll be happy to take her. So how do you want to do this, take them on a double date?”
Meanwhile, the sisters had very much noticed Fred on Sunday morning and had discussed matters later that day. They both realized it was ridiculous for them to fight over Stan; he was far from being the only fish in the sea. They agreed to bury the hatchet and just see what Stan, or Fred, or anyone else might do about asking them out.