Challenged But Not Helpless, Just Lonely

By Susan Hart

Challenged But Not Helpless, Just Lonely, is about Thomas, who lives virtually alone in his house in Pennsylvania with only his cousin to look after him. His legs were damaged in a railway accident and the only way he can get around his house is by crawling, or by means of an awkward chaise lounge & prototype wheelchair that his cousin pushes. He loses his faith and reads only controversial books, and his neighbors begin to despise him.

His neighbors threaten to boot him out and he hasn’t been in the company of a lady for a long time. One day, Thomas’ cousin puts an ad in for a mail order bride and to Thomas’ utter surprise, one shows up from California a few weeks later. He is stunned, as is she, when they both learn about the deception. Thomas thinks the woman will despise him because of his crippled legs, while she, on the other hand, believes the same thing about her own physical disability.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Susan Hart
• Release date: Oct 18, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310471834

Susan Hart

I was born in England, but have lived in Southern California for many years. I m now retired and live in the Pacific NW in a little seaside city amongst the giant redwoods and wonderful harbor, almost at the Oregon border. My husband and I have one cat, called Midnight and she is featured in two of my latest Sci-Fi short stories. I love Science Fiction, animals, and trying to help others. I publish under Doreen Milstead as well as my own name. My photo was taken right before the coronation of QE II in the UK.

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Challenged But Not Helpless, Just Lonely

By

Susan Hart

Copyright 2022 by Susan Hart

Synopsis: Challenged but Not Helpless, Just Lonely, is about Thomas, who lives virtually alone in his house in Pennsylvania with only his cousin to look after him. His legs were damaged in a railway accident and the only way he can get around his house is by crawling, or by means of an awkward chaise lounge & prototype wheelchair that his cousin pushes. He loses his faith and reads only controversial books, and his neighbors begin to despise him.

His neighbors threaten to boot him out and he hasn’t been in the company of a lady for a long time. One day, Thomas’ cousin puts an ad in for a mail order bride and to Thomas’ utter surprise, one shows up from California a few weeks later. He is stunned, as is she, when they both learn about the deception. Thomas thinks the woman will despise him because of his crippled legs, while she, on the other hand, believes the same thing about her own physical disability.

This darn bath chair… groaned Thomas as he maneuvered his strong arms on the handlebars and tried to swing the rest of his body into the seat.

Here cousin, let me help you, James said in a soft voice, knowing that Thomas did not usually like assistance, despite the fact that he needed it a lot of the time. Thomas did not refuse, and let his cousin grab him by the arm and help him into the seat, without his already raggedy legs bumping into the steering stick.

Settling into the chair, he felt comfortable, the chair being cushioned and padded generously to accommodate all of the disabled parts; however, Thomas still had to call on James to come and push him around and that made him feel even worse about his situation. Thomas looked out and saw the beauty of the world around him, the air bright and thin, even with the cold wind blowing strong, the people of Centre County, Pennsylvania running around enjoying how lucky they are to be in this state with one of their own nominated to be the president of the great United States.

Thomas looked around as James pushed the bath chair down the poorly constructed and disarrayed road.

Let’s hurry James, we need to get there before it’s announced! Thomas cried out, and felt his cousin start to push the rolling chaise a little faster. They passed by a number of large regency style homes, at least two stories high, with arches, French doors and stained glass covering these beautiful pieces of architecture.

Thomas smiled, remembering his rejecting having a house like that built for himself – he preferred his cozy cabin-styled home and did not want to change it for anything. There had been many people, knocking on his door, offering him large bundles of cash to move out or at least update his property, west of the