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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781475977134 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | iUniverse, Incorporated |
| Publication date: | 04/02/2013 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 458 |
| File size: | 576 KB |
Read an Excerpt
Forbidden
By Charles Lightcap
iUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2013 Charles LightcapAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4759-7712-7
CHAPTER 1
HEAVY EQUIPMENT WAS BEING brought in on flatbed trucks owned by Dick Geppert of 'Geppert Bro.' and this current flatbed was being driven by John Henry Lightcap, husband to Kathleen and father to Ryan and Grace. John was responsible for securing the equipment onto the elongated flatbed trailer, and then delivering its contents to a specified site. Once the equipment arrived at its destination, the equipment would be driven off the rig. This process continued on throughout the day and into the evening, if necessary.
When all of the equipment had been delivered to the sites, it was then that John would drive back to Geppert's storage yard. John didn't return to these specific construction sites until the job had been completed, unless there was no longer a need for that piece of equipment, or that a piece of heavy equipment had broken down.
The equipment was often loud, and its heavy tracks vibrated the barren earth; as each machine rumbled around a site, one could already visualize an established housing development or mall. The drivers of these powerful mammoths are usually within their own world, often listening to music at full volume on their headphones as they level the land mass to the specifications of the developer. One of these drivers, a fellow by the name of Jeff Fischer, finally recognizes, as he works the land, far away from any of the other equipment operators, that his bulldozer is sinking heavily, more-so to the rear. The bulldozer is also leaning to his left, and this is confusing because the land has been previously surveyed, and is considered to be flat, and solid.
Jeff, until this point in time, had been enjoying his favorite Led Zeppelin song, but luckily notices before it is too late that the bulldozer is slowly sinking; Jeff immediately and forcefully shifts the machine into its lowest gear and the bulldozer responds, climbing steadily out of its descent and onto an area where it sits level. Upon the realization that his mammoth was now on solid ground, he halted the machine, removed his headphones, and sat motionless. As Jeff was regaining his "not a worry in the world" attitude, he still felt a considerable amount of anxiety, and thus he made sure that the machine was in neutral. He climbed down from the bulldozer and approached the hole.
When fairly close to the hole, he recognized a horribly foul and putrid stench emanating from it; acrid enough to make him immediately and violently sick to his stomach. He swiftly turned away, as if hiding his face from a fistic assault, and forcefully vomited until he was experiencing extensive dry heaves. Thinking that this was a previously placed sewage pipe and that the bulldozer had somehow split it open, Jeff struggled to get his thoughts together. Fearing that he might be held accountable and cause the company a possible lawsuit, he straightened his torso and looked around the area, trying to assess if his recent actions had gained the attention of any of the other operators. Fortunately for Jeff, he was in an area all by himself and the closest of the other operators was about eighty-five yards away. From that distance, it was probably assumed that Jeff had gotten off his rig to check something lying on the ground, and when he bent over, that he was merely investigating what he had found. No one appeared to have paid him more than the slightest bit of attention.
Jeff walked back and climbed upon his bulldozer, placed the engine into proper gear, lowered the shovel, and began to hide the damage. With each mound of dirt that was pushed back into the hole, the stench lessened, and eventually the hole was filled. Jeff added more dirt than what appeared necessary because he felt that the hole may not be totally filled. Slowly but surely, he drove the bulldozer around the outskirts of the mound, compacting the earth as he went. As Jeff got closer and closer to the center, he added more dirt and eventually the damaged area held the total weight of the metal monster. With each pass over this area, he felt more and more confident that the damage had been corrected and that no one would ever know that it was he who caused this sewer break.
"Whew!" impulsively gushed from Jeff's mouth as his stress level, and subsequently his blood pressure, lessened; these were replaced by a "get over it" kind of laughter. He drove away from this immediate area feeling so much relief, much like the relief that he felt after encountering a hostile teenager, verbally working through the problem with the youth, and finally after using his learned skills to resolve the issue. You see, Jeff's full time job is as a youth counselor at the Buck County Youth Center. However, he found it necessary to work part time as a heavy equipment operator. This extra work helped pay off his college loans, plus it helped with his newly acquired mortgage payment.
CHAPTER 2
MYCOBACTERIUM LEPROUS seeks the cool places in the host body, particularly the skin and the surface nerves. This makes it a very visible disease, starting with patches on the skin; it may also damage nerves in the face, arms and legs. No one likes being disabled, let alone having crooked hands, lumpy, swollen faces, or sores on their hands and feet. It is this visible disability or deformity that leads to much of the fear and stigma from which affected people suffer. This lends itself to feelings of fear and shame, which may mean that those who suffer then neglect to come for treatment at the onset of the disease, and only come when they already have nerve damage. Damaged nerves result not only in paralysis, but also in loss of sensation. Multi-drug therapy treatment cannot reverse nerve damage. Loss of sensation in hands, feet and eyes means that everyday activities are fraught with danger; burns go unrecognized, wounds untended, and stones in shoes and grit in the eyes both go undetected and untreated. The end result can be the loss of sight, fingers and feet.
The vast majority of humans that resided in the original Edison community were healthy and tested negative with regards to leprosy, and they were narrowly sighted when asked to be compassionate toward those that had this horrific disease.
Little was known about leprosy some 120 years ago. While most people have a natural immunity to the disease, those that do develop leprosy can be cured with modern treatment modalities. Life-long care of anesthetic limbs is one of the greatest challenges faced by people affected by leprosy, and neglect can cause damage so severe as to cause paralysis, such as clawed fingers or the inability to blink, resulting in corneal ulcers, and if untreated, blindness.
Worldwide, there are millions of people affected by leprosy, with over 800,000 new cases detected each year and over one million are on active treatment. A further two to three million people are estimated to be living with a disability incurred through leprosy.
Within the members of the governing body of the Edison community, judgment appeared to be easy when it came to decisions regarding those that had what they viewed as this diabolical, disabling disease. The governing body, and the townspeople of Edison, often gathered for town meetings, and when those afflicted with leprosy was the topic of conversation, the consensus of opinion was that these lepers would most probably prefer death, rather than a lifetime of pain and suffering. The community continually searched for a way to rid themselves of their leper colony.
The members of the community realized that it was the fault of the leper colony that they were afflicted with this horrible disease. A consideration was given to displace the colony to a desolate location to live out the remainder of their lives; for it was quite evident that none in the colony would purposely procreate the continuance of their pain-filled existence. This decision not to procreate their kind was evidenced by the fact that every one of their unplanned offspring has always been inflicted with this disabling disease, and its horrific appearance. The community of Edison, and their close neighboring areas, were well aware that all within the colony saw procreation as a means of bringing inevitable, unwanted pain and suffering to a newborn.
There was considerable thought given to exiling the colony to a far off wooded area where they could live out the remainder of their lives together; a location, similar to a commune, a concept which was prevalent during the 1960s. The community finally decided to move the leper colony deep into an isolated, remote wooded section of Edison. It was here that the colony lived for many years, though their seclusion continually weighed on the governing body of Edison and Doylestown.
Eventually, the leper colony took its toll on the community members that were not afflicted and an official town meeting was scheduled. At this meeting, the discussion centered upon the projected cost factor relating to the care of those living within the colony; the care that included costly items such as housing with central heating and air, waste management, a water supply, food, clothing, medical coverage, eye and dental maintenance, and other necessities.
Communication came from those living within the town of Edison, and also from others living in the surrounding communities of Bucks County. It was evident that something had to be done, and a decision had to be made during this meeting. Options were considered, but were quickly abandoned, mainly due to the fact that continual care would be a cost that was not affordable; along with the cost for daily care came the fear related to the potential spread of the disease.
These considerations weighed heavily upon the governing body of the community, and the eventual decision to exile the colony. However, not to a wooded area as it had in the past, but exiled to live the remainder of their lives deep within the black bowels of the earth.
Knowing that the lepers would be devastated if given the information that the Edison community had made the final decision to exile them into the deepest recesses of the earth's bowels, it seemed obvious that some means of communication had to be created. Several ideas of how to get the lepers within the earth, without a struggle, brought no viable solution. Considerable time passed and just when the meeting was about to break up, a solution was found, and was agreed upon by the majority. The community began the formal planning of the lepers' demise, that is, their proposed burial site.
CHAPTER 3
OFF BY ITSELF, FAR away from any resemblance of a community, within a thickly forested area, their search led them to an uninhabited place that appeared to be the answer. Laborers from the area worked at least eight hours per day, digging an extended tunnel that gradually descended, further and further toward the earth's core. Realizing that it was necessary to thoroughly confuse the lepers, once they were manipulated into these depths, the laborers were given plans to construct intersecting passageways to and from the far end of the initial passageway. A week passed, then two, and then a month, and the monumental feat continued.
A tremendous amount of earth was being removed; with each passing day, the passageway extended deeper and deeper, foot by foot, until it became evident that the laborers began to fear for their lives. Some of these laborers were extremely cocky, but the extreme depth also made them fearful of a cave-in. The laborers were assured by the engineers that the depth was safe and that the work could go on. The inability of the engineers to convince the laborers was the reason that precautions were finally taken, and these took on the form of the supports, such as those that had been erected in mine shafts of the Old West.
The pace of the work slowed as wooden beams and planks were installed to prevent a possible collapse. The work was time-consuming and quite rigorous: to fully understand, and to identify with the plight of the laborer, one would only have to use their musculature to the point of exhaustion. One of the laborers would use a pick axe to tear into the earth and another would use a shovel to load the moistened, weighted earth and variety of small rocks into whatever was available at that time. The rocks that were larger, and considered to be boulders, were not moved to the surface, instead they were merely unearthed and hand rolled to the farthest area of construction; the farthest point from the entrance, and completely out of the way. As the passageway gained in length, depth, and height; the rocks that were unearthed and could be lifted were clumsily carried to a location, close to that of the boulders.
Eventually, wheel driven containers were brought to the site and these measured approximately three feet by four feet, and were four feet in depth, with a rounded bottom. At each end of its length, and close the top, there were swivels that allowed its contents to be rotated from one side to the other, discarding it in a designated spot. Initially, these containers were pushed up the tunnel's gradual incline and once upon the surface, they were wheeled about fifty feet and then dumped. This process continued until the work load was too heavy to push it to the earth's surface.
It was at this point that the precautions came into play, where the beams and planks were installed over-head, and on the earthen walls. These precautions were deemed necessary due to the fact that the work was being done so far into the earth. Because of the length of the trek, the wheels were often heavily greased and holes were driven into and through the topmost area of each dumpster. The metal hole was approximately two inches in diameter, and covering the metal surrounding the hole was a constant lubricated material. This material allowed the rope to slide, in and out, without causing it any wear or damage.
One end of the rope was securely attached at the earth's surface and the other end, when extended to its full length, was in excess of 250 feet. This heavy, thickened rope was then laced through the holes and taken to the furthest depth. When the dumpster was three-quarters of the way filled with earth and small rocks, and stones, the laborers found it difficult to understand, "that with each load removed, their workload was increasing." The laborers saw it as, "with each load removed, the end to this dangerous job would come closer to an end." While this mentality made sense, the laborers found the idea, "that with each load removed, the workload was increased," to be ludicrous. However, with a thorough explanation, they realized that with each workload removed, they were gradually going deeper and deeper into the earth. This meant that each time the dumpster was filled; the decline would increase, causing the laborers to use more physical exertion to move each load from its starting position to the surface.
As the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months, the passage gradually extended, until the construction began on the maze of deliberate, but useless passageways. Eventually, the maze of short, intricate, and complicated walkways was completed, and it exited to a lower area where another passageway extended to the entrance way of the intended burial room.
As the passageway lengthened, the workload became close to unbearable, so more laborers had to be brought in to assist those that pushed, and those that pulled the heavy loads. To lessen the struggle for the laborers known as the pullers, these men remained upon the surface and after knotting a separate length of heavy rope to the front of the dumpster, they would line up, one behind the other, and pull as if in a contested tug of war.
These powerful individuals pulled steadily, hand over fist; being of great help to the laborers below that were pushing. Using the musculature of their shoulders, chest and back, along with their own set of muscular legs, these chosen men used their shoulders, arms and hands to steer the dumpster along the temporarily lit passage. At the farthest area of the tunnel that was below where the dumpster and the pushers were situated, there stood two burly, muscle-bound men that had a firm grip on the farthest section of rope. The rope, also tied securely to a tree upon the earth's surface, extended downward from the surface, through the drilled holes in the dumpster, and then was held securely by the two burly men. This rope, when held quite taut, was used to help guide the path of the dumpster as it ascended the passageway, heading in the direction of the earth's surface.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Forbidden by Charles Lightcap. Copyright © 2013 Charles Lightcap. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc..
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