Post by Rick Henry on Jan 11, 2004 0:34:27 GMT -5
Chapter Two
The next day as Karen was trying to cut into the rubbery noodles that made up the layer’s of the lasagna that she’d ordered the day before, the door opened and someone carrying a vase with what looked like two dozen red roses stepped in.
The face of her new visitor was blocked by the sea of vibrant red. Nevertheless she was able to make out a few wisps of straw blond hair.
" Tom is that you?" Karen asked with a hint of bitter sweet joy in her voice. Not since November of last year had she seen him.
Lowering the flowers Tom’s face came into view. He smiled and once he set the vase on one of the two night stands he turned to Karen and pecked her cheek. Pulling one of the chairs in the room to the side of the bed, he sat.
" Karen, I have heard that you want a divorce. I’d like to think that you and I have a chance to make this work. You may not believe it but I do still love you." Tom said getting right to the point of his visit.
" After nearly two years and countless long distance shouting matches between New York and LA you want me to try and make it work? Are you a complete moron?" Karen asked the heat of anger flashing in her dark brown eyes.
" Karen please, I’m sorry I had no idea of the severity of your condition and then you have a heart attack and nearly die. It was not till then that I realized how blessed I am to be your husband. You’re a wonderful woman Karen! I’m sorry that I hurt you in the past. I’d like a chance to prove to you that I have changed. Please I beg of you." Tom pleaded.
" Thank you for the flowers Tom. They are lovely. But you and I are finished or at least I think that we are. I’m sorry you feel the way that you do, but I want to move on in my life." Karen said in an even tone. " You had your chance with me."
Tom sat in his chair for a moment and then stood up his head hanging.
" I wish that you’d felt differently about us, but I will not force the issue." Tom said in a hoarse whisper.
He looked at Karen for a moment and then left, in his eyes was something that Karen had never seen before, tears. It was enough to make her want to call out to him. She knew in her heart that it could never work between them. It was over.
Sighing heavily Karen turned on the television in her room and began flipping channels. She stopped when she saw a picture of herself flash up on the screen. It was one that still truly horrified her. It was taken in late 1979 and she was down to about seventy-nine pounds. It was replaced by a video of her and Richard at A&M studio’s working on backing vocals for " Hurting Each Other"
The voice of the reporter overdubbed the music in the background.
" Richard and Karen Carpenter, had a long string of hits in the 1970’s starting with " Close To You" Karen was nineteen and Richard twenty-three. The duo gathered an impressive collection of awards for their music: Including three Grammies; two in 1970 and one in 1971. They have had innumerable gold and platinum albums. In 1975 Karen started what her friends and family thought was normal dieting. However that soon turned into a deadly spiral of the disease anorexia nervosa. The illness is characterized by the abnormal fear of being overweight. To control and maintain their skeletal figure the anorexic will fast for days, exercise for hours, and most abuse laxatives. It was this pattern that swept Karen Carpenter away. Four days ago she suffered a cardiac arrest at the home of her parents, but the doctors at Downey General where able to revive the singing star. The Carpenter’s publicity agent Sarah Stanley, released this comment this afternoon live…"
Karen turned off the TV and began to eat in determined silence. How could they. It was the media’s fault in the first place that I got this illness. Now they’re telling the whole world. I HOPE THEY ROT IN HELL!
As Karen was finishing the apple pie on her tray Steven joined her.
" How are you doing today?" he asked as he read over the chart at the foot of the bed.
" Oh I’m wonderful!" Karen spat.
Steven recognized this tone of voice in his former patient. Karen rarely displayed anger and on the occasions that she did it was totally out of synch with the personality profile that Dr. Levenkron had written about her. She was more prone to trying to smooth things over then blow a fuse like her brother. Instead of stewing on something for weeks, she would take quick and decisive action with the offending friend or family member.
" Talk to me Karen. What’s eating you?" Steven smiled.
Karen returned the smile. It was an old pun on words that Karen found ironic. It was an ice breaker for them.
" The media is having a field day with this. In a way it would have been better had I died that morning. Now I have a fire to put out when I get out of this place. My family must be going ape over this, we’ve never been the type that airs our dirty laundry out in the open. It never seems to end?" Karen moaned.
Steven sat on the edge of the bed and took Karen’s free hand in his own.
" Karen remember when you first called me back in 1980. You accused me of not wanting to treat you because of your celebrity status. Now you have to realize that status is a two way street, your fans care about you and they want to be updated on your condition. Most of them have never heard of anorexia before now. In a way your having a heart attack will open the flood gate. You have forced the general public to see that this illness can and will kill a person. So in a way you may have saved thousands of lives."
Karen ran her tongue around the outside of her teeth then bit her lower lip. What Steven said made a lot of sense to her. She nodded and then said.
" Steven will you find someone here on the west-coast that is respected in the field of treating anorexia. I want the best there is. I know that you have to be getting back to New York and your patients there. You have done so much for me already, and I’m sure that your wife and kids miss you too."
" I have already done that. I spoke to Dr. Ray Vath. He’s the one responsible for treating Cherry Boone-O’Neill. He’s agreed to take you on. He believes that if you are willing to try. He can get you back to normal. You have to promise me that you will give him your trust Karen. It’s your chance for a complete recovery. Will you devote a year to treatment?"
Karen groaned at this. She was willing to try but one part of her still wanted a quick fix. The other side knew that she’d have to devote all of her time and energy to this if she was ever to get well. She nodded reluctantly and said.
" I will do it. I want this to end. I want my life back."
" Good girl," Steven smiled. " I think that you’re going to make it after all."
Karen laughed. She’d always loved " The Mary Tyler Moore Show".
The next day as Karen was trying to cut into the rubbery noodles that made up the layer’s of the lasagna that she’d ordered the day before, the door opened and someone carrying a vase with what looked like two dozen red roses stepped in.
The face of her new visitor was blocked by the sea of vibrant red. Nevertheless she was able to make out a few wisps of straw blond hair.
" Tom is that you?" Karen asked with a hint of bitter sweet joy in her voice. Not since November of last year had she seen him.
Lowering the flowers Tom’s face came into view. He smiled and once he set the vase on one of the two night stands he turned to Karen and pecked her cheek. Pulling one of the chairs in the room to the side of the bed, he sat.
" Karen, I have heard that you want a divorce. I’d like to think that you and I have a chance to make this work. You may not believe it but I do still love you." Tom said getting right to the point of his visit.
" After nearly two years and countless long distance shouting matches between New York and LA you want me to try and make it work? Are you a complete moron?" Karen asked the heat of anger flashing in her dark brown eyes.
" Karen please, I’m sorry I had no idea of the severity of your condition and then you have a heart attack and nearly die. It was not till then that I realized how blessed I am to be your husband. You’re a wonderful woman Karen! I’m sorry that I hurt you in the past. I’d like a chance to prove to you that I have changed. Please I beg of you." Tom pleaded.
" Thank you for the flowers Tom. They are lovely. But you and I are finished or at least I think that we are. I’m sorry you feel the way that you do, but I want to move on in my life." Karen said in an even tone. " You had your chance with me."
Tom sat in his chair for a moment and then stood up his head hanging.
" I wish that you’d felt differently about us, but I will not force the issue." Tom said in a hoarse whisper.
He looked at Karen for a moment and then left, in his eyes was something that Karen had never seen before, tears. It was enough to make her want to call out to him. She knew in her heart that it could never work between them. It was over.
Sighing heavily Karen turned on the television in her room and began flipping channels. She stopped when she saw a picture of herself flash up on the screen. It was one that still truly horrified her. It was taken in late 1979 and she was down to about seventy-nine pounds. It was replaced by a video of her and Richard at A&M studio’s working on backing vocals for " Hurting Each Other"
The voice of the reporter overdubbed the music in the background.
" Richard and Karen Carpenter, had a long string of hits in the 1970’s starting with " Close To You" Karen was nineteen and Richard twenty-three. The duo gathered an impressive collection of awards for their music: Including three Grammies; two in 1970 and one in 1971. They have had innumerable gold and platinum albums. In 1975 Karen started what her friends and family thought was normal dieting. However that soon turned into a deadly spiral of the disease anorexia nervosa. The illness is characterized by the abnormal fear of being overweight. To control and maintain their skeletal figure the anorexic will fast for days, exercise for hours, and most abuse laxatives. It was this pattern that swept Karen Carpenter away. Four days ago she suffered a cardiac arrest at the home of her parents, but the doctors at Downey General where able to revive the singing star. The Carpenter’s publicity agent Sarah Stanley, released this comment this afternoon live…"
Karen turned off the TV and began to eat in determined silence. How could they. It was the media’s fault in the first place that I got this illness. Now they’re telling the whole world. I HOPE THEY ROT IN HELL!
As Karen was finishing the apple pie on her tray Steven joined her.
" How are you doing today?" he asked as he read over the chart at the foot of the bed.
" Oh I’m wonderful!" Karen spat.
Steven recognized this tone of voice in his former patient. Karen rarely displayed anger and on the occasions that she did it was totally out of synch with the personality profile that Dr. Levenkron had written about her. She was more prone to trying to smooth things over then blow a fuse like her brother. Instead of stewing on something for weeks, she would take quick and decisive action with the offending friend or family member.
" Talk to me Karen. What’s eating you?" Steven smiled.
Karen returned the smile. It was an old pun on words that Karen found ironic. It was an ice breaker for them.
" The media is having a field day with this. In a way it would have been better had I died that morning. Now I have a fire to put out when I get out of this place. My family must be going ape over this, we’ve never been the type that airs our dirty laundry out in the open. It never seems to end?" Karen moaned.
Steven sat on the edge of the bed and took Karen’s free hand in his own.
" Karen remember when you first called me back in 1980. You accused me of not wanting to treat you because of your celebrity status. Now you have to realize that status is a two way street, your fans care about you and they want to be updated on your condition. Most of them have never heard of anorexia before now. In a way your having a heart attack will open the flood gate. You have forced the general public to see that this illness can and will kill a person. So in a way you may have saved thousands of lives."
Karen ran her tongue around the outside of her teeth then bit her lower lip. What Steven said made a lot of sense to her. She nodded and then said.
" Steven will you find someone here on the west-coast that is respected in the field of treating anorexia. I want the best there is. I know that you have to be getting back to New York and your patients there. You have done so much for me already, and I’m sure that your wife and kids miss you too."
" I have already done that. I spoke to Dr. Ray Vath. He’s the one responsible for treating Cherry Boone-O’Neill. He’s agreed to take you on. He believes that if you are willing to try. He can get you back to normal. You have to promise me that you will give him your trust Karen. It’s your chance for a complete recovery. Will you devote a year to treatment?"
Karen groaned at this. She was willing to try but one part of her still wanted a quick fix. The other side knew that she’d have to devote all of her time and energy to this if she was ever to get well. She nodded reluctantly and said.
" I will do it. I want this to end. I want my life back."
" Good girl," Steven smiled. " I think that you’re going to make it after all."
Karen laughed. She’d always loved " The Mary Tyler Moore Show".
