In Memor(y)am
CHARACTERS
Virginia: late seventies, cares deeply, struggles with impatience
Lewis: early eighties, kind, not always mentally clued in
SETTING
Friday night dinner at Virginia and Lewis鈥 house. Modern day.
Curtains rise, lights hit the stage. VIRGINIA and LEWIS sit on opposite ends of a long, wooden dining room table positioned downstage left. A meal of ham and green bean casserole is on the table. The only sound is of forks scraping against plates until LEWIS decides to break the silence.
LEWIS:
Dinner tastes great, Virginia.
VIRGINIA:
Thank you, Lew. Didn't take too long to put together.
LEWIS:
You know how ham is one of my favorites.
VIRGINIA:
That鈥檚 why I made it.
LEWIS:
Well it鈥檚 excellent. Thank you.
VIRGINIA:
You鈥檙e welcome, dear.
LEWIS peers at the watch on his left hand, taking notice of the time.
LEWIS:
It's almost 7 o鈥檆lock. Shouldn鈥檛 Georgeanna be here by now?
VIRGINIA:
(Stiffens, her fork stops mid-air)
She's not coming to dinner, Lewis.
LEWIS:
And why not?
VIRGINIA:
Because she's just not.
LEWIS:
Well that鈥檚 silly. I know there has to be a reason. She's always here.
VIRGINIA:
She hasn鈥檛 come to dinner in ages and she鈥檚 not going to anytime soon.
VIRGINIA shoves a bite of green bean casserole into her mouth in an attempt to stop the conversation.
LEWIS:
What for?
VIRGINIA rubs the side of her temple and remains silent.
LEWIS:
Virginia?
VIRGINIA:
What?
LEWIS:
You didn鈥檛 answer my question. Are you alright?
VIRGINIA:
I鈥m fine, Lewis. It鈥s just been a long day.
LEWIS:
(Short laugh)
We鈥檙e retired, Ginny. What could possibly tire you out?
VIRGINIA:
Errands, cooking鈥mong other things.
LEWIS:
Well, anyway, dinner鈥檚 delicious. I do love ham.
VIRGINIA:
I鈥m aware.
VIRGINIA and LEWIS both take bites of dinner. The air is tense.
LEWIS:
So how鈥s Georgie doing? Must have a good reason for missing dinner.
VIRGINIA:
Would you stop with all of the questions, Lewis?
LEWIS:
All the questions? It's the first I鈥ve asked the entire day!
VIRGINIA:
No it鈥s not.
LEWIS:
Am I not allowed to ask about how our daughter鈥檚 doing?
VIRGINIA:
Not anymore.
LEWIS:
Now why would you say that?
VIRGINIA:
Because I don鈥t want to talk about it.
LEWIS:
Ginny, what鈥檚 come over you? First you鈥re angry at me and then you don鈥t want to talk about Georgie?
VIRGINIA:
Stop calling her that.
LEWIS:
What? Georgie?
VIRGINIA:
Stop.
LEWIS:
Why?
VIRGINIA:
(Matter of fact, quietly)
Because she鈥s dead, Lewis.
LEWIS:
What?
VIRGINIA eats another bite of ham as her eyes begin to water.
VIRGINIA:
She鈥s dead, Lewis. Has been for five months.
LEWIS:
No. You鈥re lying.
LEWIS鈥 eyes begin to water, a few tears slide down his cheeks. He鈥檚 still unsure how to handle this information.
LEWIS:
Why didn鈥t you tell me?
VIRGINIA:
I have.
LEWIS:
No, you haven鈥檛. I would remember something like this. How can you be so cold?
VIRGINIA:
Because we have had this exact conversation every Friday at 7 since she died.
LEWIS:
No.
VIRGINIA:
Yes.
LEWIS:
No, no, no.
LEWIS gets up from the table abruptly and begins to pace center stage.
VIRGINIA:
(Standing)
Yes, Lewis. She鈥檚 been dead for five months and your damn dementia is so bad you ask me every Friday night why she鈥檚 late for her usual dinner.
LEWIS:
Well it鈥s not my fault I have this God forsaken memory loss. Don鈥t blame me for this.
VIRGINIA:
(Silent sobs)
I don鈥t. I don鈥t. But every week, it鈥s like I have to relive her death all over again. It鈥s not any easier for me than it is for you.
LEWIS:
I鈥檓 sorry, Gin.
VIRGINIA:
Don鈥t apologize, Lew.
LEWIS and VIRGINIA stand opposite each other, still center stage. A brief period of silence.
LEWIS:
How did she die?
VIRGINIA:
Car crash.
LEWIS:
And what about the kids?
VIRGINIA:
They were with their father, thank God.
LEWIS sucks in a breath of air and visibly exhales.
LEWIS:
I need to sit down.
LEWIS takes a seat on their living room couch, center left.
LEWIS:
I can鈥t believe it.
VIRGINIA laughs a short, non-humorous laugh. Takes a seat next to LEWIS.
VIRGINIA:
You say that every time.
LEWIS looks at her briefly, out of the corner of his eye.
LEWIS:
(Shaking his head in disbelief)
So Georgie鈥檚 really not here, is she?
A few tears slide down VIRGINIA鈥檚 cheeks as she shakes her head no.
LEWIS:
If my memory鈥檚 this bad, why don't you put me in a home?
VIRGINIA:
You鈥re my husband.
LEWIS:
And?
VIRGINIA:
I love you too much to take away the only bits of freedom you have left.
LEWIS:
(Takes Virginia鈥檚 hands in his)
I don鈥t want you to have to deal with this, Ginny.
VIRGINIA:
(Rubs Lewis鈥 hands assuredly)
It鈥檚 my job to worry about you, dear. I won鈥檛 ever put you in a home. I can handle it.
LEWIS:
I don鈥t doubt you can. It鈥s a matter of whether you should.
VIRGINIA:
This is just how it is. I don鈥t mind doing it for you. What kind of wife would I be if I abandoned you, too?
A few beats pass.
LEWIS:
I love you Ginny.
VIRGINIA:
(Squeezes Lewis鈥 hand one last time)
I know.
LEWIS:
Dinner sure did make me tired. I think I鈥檒l go to sleep. Do you need help cleaning up?
VIRGINIA:
No, Lew; I鈥檓 just fine.You head on up to bed...
LEWIS:
(Stands up from couch)
I certainly am lucky to have you.
VIRGINIA smiles sadly, gets up from the couch, and starts to clear the dishes. LEWIS walks upstage, pausing briefly, to look back at VIRGINIA.
LEWIS:
Goodnight, Gin. I'll see you in the morning.
VIRGINIA:
Goodnight, Lew.
Just as LEWIS walks offstage left, VIRGINIA drops into the kitchen chair. She picks up her fork, eats a bite of green bean casserole straight from the dish, and wipes tears off of her cheeks. She finishes chewing and sits in silence for a few seconds. VIRGINIA struggles to desire to get out of the chair. She looks at the table full of dishes and then walks away. Black out.
Brooke Daly
Brooke Daly is an Orlando, Fla., native studying Creative Writing and German at Emory University (class of 2022). Her love for words traces back from crafting poems in elementary school, to co-writing a one-act play entitled 鈥淥ut with a Bang鈥 which was performed by Infinity Theater Troupe in 2017. When Brooke isn鈥檛 with her friends or drinking coffee, she鈥檚 facetiming her cats back home.