Video Grandma

“Oh Grandma, you can’t play, you are just no good at it.”

Martha Goodman could hear her grandson’s statement and the words stung. They echoed inside her head as she drove home. Martha was hoping that her grandson’s visit would help them grow closer, but the visit proved disastrous.

Michael was so close to Henry and with his passing; the boy just didn’t seem to want to be with grandma. She purchased the video equipment especially for Michael’s visit; complete with his favorite game- a little purple dragon that fought off monsters in order to protect his cherished land from invasion of the evil, dreaded master magician. The Steven’s boy next door hooked it all up for her.

“Are you fixing to play?” When he posed the question it was hard for him not to snicker.

Martha knew it too. She saw how he kept covering his mouth with his hand, sometimes even faking a cough, especially when she told him she had every intention of playing.

“It can’t be that hard. I don’t think I’m so old I can’t learn to play a game. I don’t see why it would make a difference if it was a board game or a game you play on TV.”

“No, Ma’am, I guess you’re right about that. Here’s your control.” He was holding out a remote for Martha.

“Oh? It has its own clicker?”

“Clicker? Oh, Oh, Yes, Ma’am- its own clicker. Would you like for me to show you some of the rules of this game?”

For the next few minutes Martha listened intently to the boy’s instructions. “Hold the control, uh, the clicker with both hands. Press the O button and the little dragon jumps. Press the X button when he’s up in the air and that makes him fly.”

“Fly? Oh my, this will be exciting!”

“Yes Ma’am, exciting.” The boy headed for the entrance hall.

“Thank you, Kevin. Tell your mother I really enjoyed that recipe she gave me for Indian Corn Soup- that was very interesting as well.” She winked at the boy. She knew he would catch her meaning. There were a few summer afternoons when Kevin and her shared cookies on the front porch and secrets about his mother’s cooking.

That seemed like ages ago. They grow so fast, maybe that’s why she was so adamant about Michael and her developing a closer relationship. He was twelve this last birthday and soon he’d be too old to talk to her. She had to make a move now and the best way to reach him was to go where he played- video games.

But, she had failed. Michael was excited when he saw the game, enough that she was very hopeful- her idea was going to work! She was surprised at the realism of the game. Holding the controls in her hand and directing the little dragon to fly, jump, swim, or fire his blast of fire breath at the enemy had actually seemed very real to her. With the controls in Martha’s hand the dragon would falter, usually falling off cliffs instead of gliding to the other side. If she wanted to direct the creature to swim, she ended up drowning the poor thing.

Michael’s surprise at his grandmother’s ownership of her own video console quickly faded as he realized she could not play the game.

“Its okay, Grandma, most people your age can’t do it.”

It wasn’t long after that he developed a sudden stomach ache and had to go home. The drive across town was quiet. When she dropped him off he mumbled something about being sorry he had ruined their evening and then he was gone- running up the sidewalk as though he couldn’t wait to get away from her.

She pulled the car into the garage and closed it up for the evening. The drive back was long- long enough for his words to echo in her heart a thousand times. She had tried to listen to the radio, even sang along with several of the songs, but it still nagged at her. She saw it in his eyes, and heard it in his voice.

She entered through the kitchen, locked the back door, and put the chain on. She opened the refrigerator door and thought about making herself a sandwich. However she wasn’t really hungry. She took the freshly baked pie out and sat it on the counter. Maybe she would have some coffee and pie, and go to bed.

“..most people your age…”

She went to the living room where she stared at the game.

The square black box with its cords stretching across her braided rug, and connecting to the television set sat mocking her from the coffee table. Most people your age burned through her until Martha, standing in the middle of her living room cried out loud, “I can too do it!”

She threw her purse on the couch.

“Move over Maxwell,” she instructed her cat. The cat meowed at her, but reluctantly gave up his place on the sofa.

Martha flipped on the button and watched as the game warmed up, and came to life. The television screen that usually showed the weather channel exploded with the bright colors of Dragon Land, and a small purple dragon flew into the picture to land on the top of a mountain. He was a cute little guy, and so brave. Didn’t matter how many times Martha ran him into a tree, or dropped him off a mountain cliff into the ocean he always came back to the beginning spot to try again.

“I will learn to do this,” Martha declared.

Maxwell lay beside her on the couch, licking his paws as the music keyed up on the video game. The cat stopped his washing and stared at the T.V.

She understood the mechanics of the controls it was trying to be precise that proved to be difficult. Aching hands inhibited Martha’s coordination, but she was not going to let the arthritis stop her. She was determined to learn to fly. She had to practice.

The game began and she slowly walked the dragon to the edge of the cliff. He needed to fly over to the other side to continue on his journey.

“Okay, little fellow, here we go.”

The dragon walked cautiously to the edge and leapt into the air and quickly plummeted to the bottom of the cavern where he crashed. The game played a little tune meaning the dragon died. He then quickly re-appeared at the top of the cliff, and the game began again. Again Martha walked the cartoon dragon slowly to the edge of the cartoon cliff; hit the X button, and the X button again to glide. Again the little purple dragon plummeted to the bottom of the cavern, crashed and died. A small puff of dust rose from the cavern’s floor to indicate that the poor little fellow fell hard. Maxwell raised his head and meowed at her.

“I am not making too much noise, now go back to sleep and leave me alone,” Martha answered the cat.

The dragon walked to the edge, jumped into the air and quickly fell to the bottom again.

“Oh drat!”

The dragon walked to the edge, jumped bravely into the air, flew a few seconds and then plummeted to his demise. This time the dragon ran out of lives and the game ended. She pushed the button to re-start the game. The phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Martha? Aren’t you coming?” her friend, Jodi Nelson inquired.

“Coming?”

For a moment she had forgotten it was bingo night.

“Oh, no dear, I..uh..I have a headache, can’t come tonight,” she mumbled as she balanced the receiver between her chin and shoulder.

The dragon was on the edge of the cliff again, she hit the X button and he jumped, she hit the X again and he flew for a moment and then crashed.

“Drat! I killed him again,” Martha said

“What? Martha, you killed who?” Jodi Nelson asked into the receiver.

“Martha killed someone?” Standing next to the phone caller was her other bingo playing buddy, Clara Juniper. “What’s going on?”

“Hush, Clara, I am trying to find out.” Jodi waved her friend quiet. “Who did you kill, Martha? Should I call the police?”

“The dragon. I killed the little fellow again. Listen, Jodi, tell the girls I’ll see them next week. I have to learn to fly tonight.”

“She hung up! Right in my ear, she hung up the phone!” Jodi exclaimed.

“What did she say?” Clara asked.

“Said she couldn’t come tonight she had to learn to fly.”

Clara shook her head with pity. She’d seen it before, an older lady loses her husband, and the first thing to go is the mind. “Maybe we should go check on her.”

“Well, I already bought my specials,” Jodi hesitated.

At any minute the early bird games would start. Jodi looked at the stack of bingo sheets she held and then at Clara- the decision was hard. Checking on a friend was important, but they were already there and she had her specials.

“I know,” Jodi Nelson’s blue eyes sparkled with decision. “We’ll go by after the game, and if the lights are still on, we’ll stop in for coffee.” They agreed that was the correct plan and hurried to find their seats before the early bird game began.

Martha on the other hand couldn’t be the least concerned with the early bird game at Bingo. She was sitting on her couch trying desperately to learn how a dragon flies. The clock in the hallway softly chimed the six o’clock hour. Maxwell raised his head and meowed at her again, it was dinnertime. He stretched; clawing his front nails into her sofa and lazily moved toward her, rubbing against Martha’s arm. Martha pushed him away with her elbow, keeping her eyes transfixed on the television screen and her fingers on the buttons. The dragon walked to the edge, leapt into the air, glided nervously across the cavern and landed on the other side.

“I did it! I did it! I did it!” She yelled, scaring the cat into a running panic behind the couch. “Too old to learn? Ha! I’ll show Michael who’s too old to learn.”

The dragon finally on the other side of the cavern continued on his journey. The video program was one of the finest, and the details intriguing. The forest was colorful and bright; pleasing to the eyes. From time to time a leaf fell from a tree and drifted aimlessly down to the ground. The grass moved as if the wind was gently blowing through the meadow. Bunnies hopped as the dragon passed along his path. Martha stared at the screen mesmerized by the colors, and the details.

“It’s like being inside a movie,” she said.

Her fingers were sore with arthritis. Stretching them to maneuver the buttons and actions of the video was painful, but Martha was determined to learn this game. She was unaware of her cat’s pleas for food; she was unaware of the clock ticking away, and unaware of the growing darkness outside. Martha did not stop to turn on the lights, to feed the cat, or herself, and from that point on she allowed the answering machine to catch her calls. Nothing was more important than that little dragon on his quest to rid the land of the evil magician.

Maxwell accepted that he was being ignored and gave up on trying to get Martha’s attention away from the game; instead he helped himself to the pie sitting on the kitchen counter. It was probably meant for him anyway.

Martha was doing better now; the little dragon seemed stronger in his ability to maneuver. Martha mastered the keys and by moving her body to match the actions of the dragon she began to feel it was ‘she’ that was swimming across the pool of dragon-eating fish. When the dragon needed to rush to the left- Martha leaned her body to the left. When the dragon needed to jump over a falling tree- Martha jumped from the couch and then rested back as he landed. With each level of achievement she rejoiced with that little purple hero at their accomplishment.

The clock in the hallway chimed eleven, but only Maxwell was aware of the time. The pie he fed himself for dinner was not settling well in his stomach. Maxwell rubbed desperately against the front door begging to go out, but there was no one to open the door for him. Martha was busy.

She reached the second level and the little dragon entered the Kingdom Of The Wicked Fairies. In this section Martha had to assist her hero with retrieval of the stolen key to the castle. The land of the wicked fairies was a dark and foreboding land. There were no meadows here, just jagged edges and cliffs. Rain fell throughout the dragon’s journey with foreboding sounds indicted the presence of evil all around him. Martha shivered with the coldness of this second level land. The controls in her hand monitored the dragon’s movement. When the dragon died, or fell, or was hit over the head- the controls would vibrate in her hand adding more realism to the game.

“I can see why parents don’t want their children to spend too many hours with these games. It’s so real!”

The light of the television set burned images of fire breathing monsters into Martha’s brain. So transfixed was she on the game she was unaware of all around her. Her skills were improving. She was now on level two and facing a battle against the evil magician. With this win she and the dragon would re-capture the kingdom for dragons everywhere. But, it was also the win she needed to show Michael that she could share his interest, his world and that she wasn’t too old to learn anything new. All of her attention was now focused on the television screen and the dramatic events unfolding before her eyes.

“I don’t see any lights on, maybe she’s gone to bed,” Jodi said. She was standing on Martha’s porch knocking loudly on the door.

“There’s a strange light coming from the living room,” Clara pointed out. “I think she left the television set on.”

“I can hear Maxwell crying.” Jodi pressed her ear against the front door. Standing on her toes she tried to peer through the small window at the top of the door.

“Oh Lord, Clara, do you think she’s injured? She wouldn’t let Maxwell just cry like that. Remember what she said when we called her? That she was staying home tonight ‘cause she was going to learn to fly? Do you think she was really trying to fly? Maybe she jumped off the counter and broke her hip?”

“Jodi, get real. Martha couldn’t climb up on the counter anymore than you could.” Clara Juniper answered exasperated, and then frowned at the thought of her friend lying on the kitchen floor with a broken hip. “Maybe we better call the police?”

“Let’s get to a phone,” Jodi was already rushing back to the car. “There’s one at the corner store we can use.”

Martha never heard her friends at the front door. She couldn’t even focus on Maxwell’s cries to go out. The only thing she saw or felt was the video game. She liked it! She liked the little dragon’s quest to fight evil. She enjoyed blowing the monsters to bits and she really loved the flying. With the controls in her hands, vibrating and moving with the video; the combination of sight and feeling made it seem as though she herself were flying. She was the dragon.

The dragon moved through the halls of the main castle, he was about to come face to face with the magician himself. It was eerie quiet within the castle walls, only a hall clock chimed softly, lowly in the background. The video game was so real for her that the eerie quiet of entering the Magician’s Castle was matched with the eerie quiet of her living room. The house was dark, the only light was the television’s light, and that burned through her eyes into her brain drawing her further into the rooms of the castle.

A door pushed open and Martha, no the dragon, they were one and the same now and as they entered a circled arena the outside edge turned to lava and fire began to fall from the sky.

“We’re in for it now,” Martha said excitedly. “Where are you, you evil old magician? Show yourself you coward!”

Maxwell heard Martha’s yell in a strange deep, excited voice that he was not familiar with, and it made him nervous. He cried louder at the door; scratching long groves into the door.

So excited was Martha at meeting the magician’s battle and progressing to the next level of play that she was virtually yelling at the television set. It was at that moment that her bingo buddies arrived back at the house with a policeman to check on poor Martha. As they stepped up on the porch they heard a loud voice inside yell.

“Show yourself- you coward!”

“Oh dear! Martha is in trouble!” Jodie exclaimed.

“Stand back ladies and let me handle this.” The officer instructed. He banged on the door. “Mrs. Goodman? Are you in there? It’s the police. Can you come to the door?”

Maxwell on the other side of the door meowed he needed out. The dragon fought his last battle against the evil magician beating him into the dust and reclaiming the castle for dragons everywhere. Martha jumped from the couch in her joy.

“Take that you nasty man!” She yelled.

The young officer heard her yell and forced his shoulder against the door. He rammed the door again and it gave way. The door slammed open against the wall of the entranceway, and knocked over a porcelain vase of flowers sitting on a circular table by the door.

He burst through the door with his gun drawn frightening Maxwell. The cat ran back into the kitchen no longer able to hold his stomach, or his bowels. The poor cat needed to relieve himself, and did so. In the dark house all that was visible was the television set.

“What?” Martha asked, turning to face the young police officer. “What?”

“Are you alright, Ma’am?”

“What?”

“Oh Lord, she’s had a stroke!” Jodi called from the safety of the porch.

“Call 911, she’s had a stroke, all she can say is, ‘What’?”

Clara reached inside and turned on the lights; flooding the hallway. Martha still held the controls to the dragon’s movement in her hand as she blinked in the heavy light.

“Martha, it’s us, Clara and Jodi, are you alright? Martha,” Clara tried to get her friend to focus her eyes on them.

Finally Martha’s head cleared and she became aware of her present surroundings. “Clara? Jodi? What’s going on?”

“Ma’am, are you alright? We heard you screaming from the porch,” the officer began.

“Oh! Oh my, yes. Yes of course, I am fine. I was just playing a game.”

“A game?” The officer looked around at the group. “Someone want to explain what is going on here?”

“Well, you see my grandson, Michael, nice boy, wants to be a policeman when he grows up as a matter of fact. Anyway, Michael said I couldn’t play this game because I was too old,” Martha stammered. She pointed at the Television set and the video game. “Do you have children, Officer?”

“A girl….”

“Ah, does she play video games?”

“She’s only two….”

“You are lucky there,” Martha laid the remote down and approached the group. “Let’s all get some coffee and I’ll explain. They are so real, these video games. You have no idea.”

They gathered in the dinning room around the heavy oak table as the policeman filled in his report; smiling with every explanation Martha gave of her adventure into the dragon land. The young officer gathered his report over fresh coffee and a strange piece of pie that appeared to be smashed on top and a little soggy. Clara and Jodi helped their friend clean up the trailing mess from Maxwell into the kitchen before making the coffee.

“I’m just glad everything is okay, Ma’am,” he tipped his hat and left.

Martha was sure she heard the officer giggle on his way to the patrol car. Jodi and Clara finished the dishes fussing at Martha not to scare them like that in the future, not really assured that she hadn’t lost her mind. Jodi was convinced that Martha had a stroke and the signs would become more apparent by morning.

Finally they gathered their things to leave. Martha assured them she would be safe; the door was able to still close and she’d have the lock checked in the morning. The chain would do for the night.

“You call us if you need anything,” Clara offered and then on a whim decided to tell her friend, what only a friend could say. “It wasn’t your best pie, dear,” she whispered and headed for the car.

“Now Martha, you go to bed. Don’t sit up all night playing that game,” Jodi told her. “I’ve heard you can get cancer of the brain from those things.”

“Oh, you, dears, don’t worry about me. I will, I promise. I will go right to bed,” Martha promised.

Martha closed the door, chained it and sat a chair under the doorknob for added security. Maxwell wandered from a hallway closet looking drained.

“Maxy? Where have you been? Need to go out?” She shooed the cat outside even though he protested that he no longer needed to. Then she relocked the door. She had some good friends. Martha thought about Clara and Jodi calling the police to check on her. It was the right thing to do; it is what she would have done. She flipped off the hall light casting the house in darkness again.

Only the light from the television set was visible. She stood in the entranceway to the living room peering over the back of the couch, and she could just see the top of the TV set and the little purple dragon. He was sitting on top of the mountain waiting for the game to begin. Martha felt he was calling to her.

“Well, Dragon,” she walked back into the living room and picked up the controls. “Want to try it again? This time we will go for points!”