| Wake Up Barbara! And Help Me Find This Snake! Barbara Watson |
Sideglances column by Sarah Greene, page 2 After frustrating months of living with her new in-laws, Barbara embarked on the missionary adventure that was to test both her concept of marriage and her self-confidence. IN JULY, Barbara had written to Sue: "I'm thankful to have you as my best friend and to be able to share with you my struggles and insecurities. It always makes me feel better to unload my concerns in a letter to you, and I want you to feel free to unload your concerns in letters to me. I promise I won't jump on you again." The promise referred to the advice Barbara freely gave Sue about her love life, attempting to help her sort through the several suitors who had Sue's interest. Both young women stuck to their "best friend" principles of exchanging intimate thoughts without self-censorship. This proved to be a lifeline to Barbara after the newlyweds embarked on their mission. In the Dominican Republic, Ralph was able to utilize his good mechanical skills but Barbara doubted she could adjust to the primitive living conditions and demands of the work, which involved travel on dangerous roads with a medical caravan. Her work was to fill prescriptions from used eyeglasses donated for the native people. BY OCTOBER, 1975, Barbara was able to report a more positive attitude about her marriage, and Sue wrote back she was happy to hear it. In her own life she had just ended a 3-week engagement with a man who attracted her greatly, but never quite measured up on the maturity and religious-compatibility scale. She found comfort in her teaching, which she said she loved. "My second graders inspire me," Sue wrote. "They seem to enjoy my class. There's so much to learn! I have more bookkeeping, meetings, rules, etc., than I ever expected. I don't know of any other profession that would reward me as much, though. I can enter the room and all my problems vanish. Because I am so busy, I have no time to think of myself." Responding, Barbara wrote that "Hearing from you is like watching a soap opera… But I do feel bad for you. I'm also proud of you for your strength of character. I'm glad your school children are such a help to you, in spite of your personal difficulties. You really do seem to be called to your profession and I envy that… "Here I am, a so-called missionary in the Dominican Republic, but I'm still me. All my life I saw missionaries at church and always thought they were the ultimate. They were the most sacrificial of all people, serving their lives for God, sacrificing the pleasures of home to save lost souls. "But now that I'm here - I know I have not changed. I'm still me. Other missionaries I see - they're all just people! Some of them live better than most middle class Americans back at home. They not only don't seem to be sacrificing - they seem to be living pretty high on the hog. "And I see the same petty jealousies and egos and people out for self-aggrandizement here." But she went on to write, "We've met a lot of beautiful missionaries and North American visitors to our medical projects. Most of them are self-sacrificial." After four years Barbara and Ralph concluded their mission and moved to South Carolina. She wrote to Sue in September, 1978: "I was amazed at how much culture shock we experienced coming back here. I think the things that hit me in the face the most were the smooth roads, the air conditioning everywhere, hot and cold, clean running water, being able to flush toilet paper... I don't think I'll ever gripe about taxes again. I no longer take things for granted that they support, like the police force, firefighters, and road workers." Sue reported in response that she had enjoyed a vacation in Hawaii, was attending graduate school, and had sent a wedding present to the man whose relationship with her had been so problem-filled. In June of 1979 Sue wrote that her dad had undergone open-heart surgery, followed by a heart attack. But worse news was to come. The book tells it from a reprint of an Irving News article on July 31, 1979. It said that Sue V. Dodson, 25, died of massive head injuries about midnight at Mineola General Hospital. She was driving a 1974 Dodge eastbound on US 80 when her car collided with a 1973 Mercury that was westbound in the eastbound lane, according to police reports. The driver of the Mercury had a broken leg. D'Lea Nichols, a 23-year-old passenger in Ms. Dodson's car, was injured. <click here to continue> |