Marianna McCarthy
Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2024 12:27 am
**Before the horde**
Marianna had made peace with death a long time ago. With the passing of her husband, she wanted nothing more than to join him, to know the peace and solace of being home with the Lord. But for some reason she just kept kicking. Even after some close calls, after the deaths of the young folk in her care, after questioning why them and not her, she kept going. Tommy, Mez, Yee, Eddy, Dutch, Rae, John, Michael, all those who went home before their time. Marianna would have taken the place of any of them.
But the Lord put her on another path, one that would give those who remained something they needed more than another soldier- food that wasn’t eaten cold out of the can. And perhaps a bit of hope as well.
She didn’t realize quite how much she needed a bit of hope herself until she met Bill. Finally she had met someone to give her a real reason to care for herself. Their wedding was the happiest she’d ever felt since the outbreak.
**Retirement at last **
Adjusting to life in Cheyenne Mountain wasn’t as hard for Marianna as it was for some. She hadn’t been witness to many of the horrors of the other survivors, and she had a doting husband to help her through the rough times. She quickly became the grandmother to her entire neighbourhood, always giving away fresh baked goods and sewing. Her and Bill would volunteer their time to care for orphaned children, which only cemented the fact that Marianna made the right choice in not having any. (She loved them all dearly of course). Marianna and Bill would become the surrogate grandparents to the children of Tressa and Piper. The rest of the time Marianna spent housetraining her chickens and trying to tempt Blackjack the cat to stick around.
Finally, Marianna could feel at peace. The squeals of children no longer made her panic at the noise. Bill could go for a walk without her fearing he might not come back. She no longer prayed that the Lord would take her instead of someone else. Some semblance of order was restored, and the old would die before the young.
Marianna would pass at the age of 91, 13 years after arriving at Cheyenne Mountain. She didn’t want anyone to grieve, she was finally going home to meet the Lord, and be reunited with all those who went before her.
Marianna had made peace with death a long time ago. With the passing of her husband, she wanted nothing more than to join him, to know the peace and solace of being home with the Lord. But for some reason she just kept kicking. Even after some close calls, after the deaths of the young folk in her care, after questioning why them and not her, she kept going. Tommy, Mez, Yee, Eddy, Dutch, Rae, John, Michael, all those who went home before their time. Marianna would have taken the place of any of them.
But the Lord put her on another path, one that would give those who remained something they needed more than another soldier- food that wasn’t eaten cold out of the can. And perhaps a bit of hope as well.
She didn’t realize quite how much she needed a bit of hope herself until she met Bill. Finally she had met someone to give her a real reason to care for herself. Their wedding was the happiest she’d ever felt since the outbreak.
**Retirement at last **
Adjusting to life in Cheyenne Mountain wasn’t as hard for Marianna as it was for some. She hadn’t been witness to many of the horrors of the other survivors, and she had a doting husband to help her through the rough times. She quickly became the grandmother to her entire neighbourhood, always giving away fresh baked goods and sewing. Her and Bill would volunteer their time to care for orphaned children, which only cemented the fact that Marianna made the right choice in not having any. (She loved them all dearly of course). Marianna and Bill would become the surrogate grandparents to the children of Tressa and Piper. The rest of the time Marianna spent housetraining her chickens and trying to tempt Blackjack the cat to stick around.
Finally, Marianna could feel at peace. The squeals of children no longer made her panic at the noise. Bill could go for a walk without her fearing he might not come back. She no longer prayed that the Lord would take her instead of someone else. Some semblance of order was restored, and the old would die before the young.
Marianna would pass at the age of 91, 13 years after arriving at Cheyenne Mountain. She didn’t want anyone to grieve, she was finally going home to meet the Lord, and be reunited with all those who went before her.