Alright, I know that I should put this in a lost media site or something like that and I've got a better chance of getting struck by lightning than actually figuring this out, but here goes.
Remember the textbooks you used in elementary/middle school? The ones I used were thick, and had multiple stories in them for the reading/writing classes. Of course they start out with simple stories in elementary that kids can comprehend (though secretly teaching those who can "read between the lines" as it was, like what a grapefruit is and how it can help you live to age 100). Though most of my peers dreaded reading through them, I loved these books and the stories inside. Then one day in 8th grade (middle school in the US for those in other countries) I read a section that seemed a bit more... disturbing. For the life of me I can't remember the title, but I remember bits and pieces of the story. Heres what I remember
-A guy returns to his hotel from tennis practice (I specifically remember a racket), and encounters an old lady in the elevator.
-The old lady takes the guy to her apartment that is decadent in Indian decor, we're talking Asian Elephants statues, shrines, incense, the works and starts telling the guy her story of when she lived in India
- during said story, the guy mentions to himself "India? that explains all the brass"
- The story itself is muddled at this point, The old woman in her youth in India met a man who was either a cop or a soldier (can't remember which) and they had a kid named Irene. Near the end of the story, the old woman laments "I was getting old and homesick, but India was all Irene knew" and she thanks him for listening to an old woman's ramblings.
-the next day or two, the guy learns the old woman died, and she left him a specific ornate vase that he noticed in her room, attached is a note that said something along the lines of "take care of Irene, she likes to listen to the radio".
Now, I didn't get the chance to actually read or discuss this with my peers, as we never covered that section. Funny how most textbooks are shortened to fit the limited school years huh? makes you wonder how many good stories are passed up for sub par ones. While I might not have had the opportunity to do that with my peers back then, I can discuss this with random strangers on a forum on the internet! What I took away from this was the old woman killed her child and kept quiet about it for years, coming clean to a random stranger and then passing away. It's one hell of a story if that was the intention. What I'd want to do is at least know the name of it, because as I mentioned, the name currently escapes me.
Remember the textbooks you used in elementary/middle school? The ones I used were thick, and had multiple stories in them for the reading/writing classes. Of course they start out with simple stories in elementary that kids can comprehend (though secretly teaching those who can "read between the lines" as it was, like what a grapefruit is and how it can help you live to age 100). Though most of my peers dreaded reading through them, I loved these books and the stories inside. Then one day in 8th grade (middle school in the US for those in other countries) I read a section that seemed a bit more... disturbing. For the life of me I can't remember the title, but I remember bits and pieces of the story. Heres what I remember
-A guy returns to his hotel from tennis practice (I specifically remember a racket), and encounters an old lady in the elevator.
-The old lady takes the guy to her apartment that is decadent in Indian decor, we're talking Asian Elephants statues, shrines, incense, the works and starts telling the guy her story of when she lived in India
- during said story, the guy mentions to himself "India? that explains all the brass"
- The story itself is muddled at this point, The old woman in her youth in India met a man who was either a cop or a soldier (can't remember which) and they had a kid named Irene. Near the end of the story, the old woman laments "I was getting old and homesick, but India was all Irene knew" and she thanks him for listening to an old woman's ramblings.
-the next day or two, the guy learns the old woman died, and she left him a specific ornate vase that he noticed in her room, attached is a note that said something along the lines of "take care of Irene, she likes to listen to the radio".
Now, I didn't get the chance to actually read or discuss this with my peers, as we never covered that section. Funny how most textbooks are shortened to fit the limited school years huh? makes you wonder how many good stories are passed up for sub par ones. While I might not have had the opportunity to do that with my peers back then, I can discuss this with random strangers on a forum on the internet! What I took away from this was the old woman killed her child and kept quiet about it for years, coming clean to a random stranger and then passing away. It's one hell of a story if that was the intention. What I'd want to do is at least know the name of it, because as I mentioned, the name currently escapes me.
