On Sunday afternoons, it’s Ann’s job to rub John’s back. He lies on the couch, his fists closed tight and limbs stiff. John has trouble breathing. He can’t talk and he’s going blind.
What’s it like to go blind? The squint in his right eye is worse. That eye barely opens and the other one doesn’t seem to be able to make out when Ann or Chrissy make a funny face.
While Ann rubs, Chrissy puts LPs on the record player, a large piece of furniture that has speakers integrated into the cabinet. Chrissy presses a button and the record drops down, the needle hits.
“Pianissimo, girls,” the Doctor’s Wife says, poking her head in from the kitchen.
Ann wishes her mother would just leave them alone. John doesn’t mind the music. His head turns to follow her around and she thinks that he would smile if he could. These are good songs. The girls listen to musicals: South Pacific, Camelot, Oklahoma. The Sound of Music plays now. Ann has memorized all the words, and so has Chrissy. They sing along, but not too loudly. Ann continues to pat as she’s been instructed.