All in the wrist

So today, you wouldn't believe.

The alarm woke me at five thirty -- in the morning -- and by seven I was on the road to Rock Hill.

Specifically I was bound for the newish Rock Hill Tennis Center, which this week is hosting the Rock Hill Rocks Open Professional Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tournament.

Big tennis fan are you Jenny, you ask?

No.

But I do like to be invited to things, and I was personally invited to this thing by one of the tennis players, Miss Natalie Pluskota of Newnan, Georgia.

You may remember I mentioned Natalie in a post last May, which was when I met her, on the day Andrew graduated from college.

Andrew and Natalie had become friends at a Bible study and since she played tennis for the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, he had gone to see her compete a couple of times.

Late last week Natalie sent me a message telling me about the Rock Hill tournament and we texted back and forth and I decided I'd go.

Then on Sunday night I found out she was slated to play first on Monday morning, and first meant nine o'clock.

Rock Hill is a ninety-minute drive from Columbia.

Oy!

But I made it in plenty of time and I met Natalie's mom and was visiting with her and then we proceeded to the bleachers courtside to watch Natalie play her second qualifying match.

Only, it promptly began raining -- in earnest -- and that prompted a delay. The contest actually began more than three hours later.

But we had a good time hanging out together, including a trip to Chick-fil-A. Back at the tennis center, before we knew it Natalie had taken to the court and in only one hour, she won her match.

Naturally I had found a big old cemetery to visit while in Rock Hill so after saying goodbye to Natalie and her mom, I tooled over to Laurelwood under sunny skies and scudding clouds.

I did a slow drive-around first to case the joint, as it were, and before long I found this lovely lady.

She beckoned to me and I went over and started taking her picture. About thirty seconds later I noticed she was an amputee.

I also noticed that her human counterpart was a married woman of sixteen years old at the time of her early death.

It's not unusual to see cemetery statutes with absent limbs or digits or even heads, but something about Willie Virginia's un-handed condition got to me.

Maybe it's because it's October which is sort of scary month, and in the movie Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte, which I saw not long ago and which is the scariest movie ever as far as I am concerned, poor John Mayhew gets a hand cut off at the wrist.

At any rate I took at least twenty pictures of all aspects of Willie Virginia's marred monument, before moving on.

Still marveling inwardly at Natalie Pluskota's confident one-armed backhand, I wondered if Willie Virginia would have enjoyed watching -- or playing in -- a tennis match, if she'd lived a little longer.

Figuring we'd never know, I used both hands and wrists to make it home safely. Then I took a nap.

That is all! Happy week!

Comments

[Mari]

Good for you for getting up early and making it to that tennis match!
I think that statue is sad too. It doesn't help that the amputated hand has been left there. And of course, 16 is far too young!

[Donna M.]

Those headstone photos are lovely! And yes, the amputated hand is a bit on the creepy side, LOL.

[Donna (Texas)]

How Pretty she is! Glad you got to see the match!
Love the stone hands...great shots and I saw that movie...Once! Never again!Hahaaa
hughugs

[glenda]

Wow, you were up at 5:30......I am soooo proud of you. Sounds like a wonderful day, and I would have loved to be with you at Laurelwood and photographed that beautiful Angel. So sad about her hand. Lets hope she was left-handed. ............G.

[irene]

You're an incredible lady, getting up an driving and then waiting in the rain, and then STILL having the energy to visit the cemetery. It's unfortunate that the lovely statue was so damaged, how very sad that the human part of her died so very young. Have a good week.