FOR WANT OF A MAID

FOR WANT OF A MAID

She came from Bacolod. A 48 year-old, talkative woman who had been widowed twice. She was referred to us by a friend who knew all along that we have been looking for a housemate to help us do the regular household chores.

Immediately, she started telling many interesting stories about her family. Both her husbands died of accident and she was left with four children two each from both former partners. Her eldest daughter was taking up Nursing while her son was taking up Engineering. The two younger are still in the elementary grades.

Asked how she managed to send her children to school, she said they were both full scholars because they were intelligent. She seemed to be the housemate we have been looking for. We considered ourselves pretty lucky this time. She knew how to cook, do laundry and ironing and almost anything that we wanted her to do.

We offered her a room used by my nephew before he got married and have a house of his own. Because the room had been idle for a long time some insects and house lizards have been everywhere. It was cleaned by my two boy helpers. When she was about to sleep she was greeted by a giant “tuko” lying flat on her bed.
I asked my boy helpers to chase the “tuko” and in fact it was killed.

The new housemate was probably traumatized and was unable to sleep. The following morning she was going around telling everyone how uneasy she felt that night to the point that she thought she heard laughter and some undecipherable sounds as if from ghosts.

She did her job well. Both my wife and I silently wished that she stay longer with us. All is well the whole day but at around 10:00 O’clock in the evening she came up to the second floor where my wife and I were sleeping, complaining of severe abdominal pain. I gave her anti-acid thinking that she probably was suffering from hyperacidity. But she was not relieved. I gave her anti-spasmodic but also to no avail. She claimed that it was the first time it happened to her.

I presumed that the pain was psychological and was probably being experienced by her for second gain such as “attention-getting or mask of responsibility”. I went to bed myself assured that the pain would be gone soon enough. But no… it turned more severe. She started doubling up. Imagining that it could be a symptom of “pancreatitis” I brought her to the hospital. As a routine procedure she was given drips, injections and other medicine. An electrocardiogram was performed as well as blood chemistry, urinalysis and fecal examination. When she complained of mild chest pain she was administered Oxygen inhalation and scheduled for Ultra sound examination the following day.

I talked to the Resident-on-duty to explain my suspicion that the symptom was psychological and true enough when I told her that I would ask her “Ninong” to fetch her so that she could rest and recuperate in his place, she immediately felt relieved of all her symptoms. What we first thought was a gold find turned out to be just a bundle of mad. It cost as much.

Moral of the story: If you can do the job yourself, don’t depend on maids.