Not thinking in the abstract at all, but the house where we
worked the last two weekends needs to be bulldozed. That’s G’s opinion. When the house gets sold and closes escrow,
the united feeling is that The sheriff will come and move Brother John out onto
the street.
Actually everyone who was working there was a hero. Dealing with a hoarder is an impossibility
even with education and time. I watched
everyone react in their own way to this horror story with denial, anger,
closing down. No one has made an attempt
to treat John with kindness….they are too horrified. They have no time. His mother died, and the house will go on the
market Tuesday. I don’t think he
understands.
Two rooms are still wall to wall rotten stuff plus the yards.
“How long has that dune buggy been sitting out there in the
driveway?” George asked.
“Oh, a few years,” John said.
“When was the last time you worked on it?”
“I bought a gasket set for the motor last summer,” he told
us, “but someone threw it away.”
Followed by endless excuses compounded by his alcoholism.
We aren’t going back next weekend. We have excuses of our own. No one has the money to hire a cleanup crew…and
they exist. No one has the time to wait
while he does nothing with any of his mess.
The best I can do is be there to listen to Bobbie and commiserate. We all agree John needs professional
help. I doubt if he will get it.
Life is Really in the
Footnotes:
How frustrating! Good on you both for all the cleaning up you have done there.
ReplyDeleteSo very sad. A. Fragile soul yearning to be made secure by stuff while other fragile souls can see the sickness but are powerless to Solve/heal. Everyone loses.
ReplyDeleteI think David would be a hoarder without my influence. Read a book on hoarding, It is a sickness aside from alcoholism,which does not help. Dianne
ReplyDeletePS Take care of yourself. D~
The ending to the story has been written and you are not the author.
ReplyDeleteThis is pretty pitiful. We had a similar case in Hawaii. They've passed a law though where you can be fined for keeping your house a wreck. Relatives finally came and helped clear it out. It's so hard to see people whose lives are so wretched.
ReplyDeleteHow very sad. But so good of you and G to help. Good luck with the mammogram tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteThe worst part of the hoarding is that the hoarder can't see the forest through the trees.
ReplyDeleteMuchas Smuchas
So sad, it's a great kindness you did for him. The law may start the required cleanup but the need can't be legislated.
ReplyDeleteThis is not unusual here in the UK and there are TV programmes about the unfortunate people who suffer from this affliction.
ReplyDeleteI found I couldn't watch the programmes - it reminded me too much of what I was afraid could happen in MTL's office.