When I was a youngster, 10 or 11 years old, we moved next door to a family by the name of Manuel. Hill, Eva and their daugther Agnes. Hill was a litte guy, no more than 5'3" or 5'4" and 130 pounds that looked exactly like the old 1930's western movie actor Bob Steele. Eva and Agnes were big, really big. Both were at least 5'10" and while Eva probably weighed 250 or so Agnes was obese. She had to have weighed at least 350-375 if not more. Not only was she obese, she was downright unfortunate in the beauty department. The Manuels farmed and Hill worked part time for the county but Agnes was so big she never did much of anything except sit.
Jimmy Dale Plunkett, who lived a couple of miles down the road, was the same age as Agnes. He was a nice looking, well built, young man with pretty much his choice of the girls in the community. One of my sisters had a crush on him but from the time he was 16 or 17 he was desperately and hopelessly in love with Agnes. Agnes was too big to get around much so they never went out but Jimmy Dale spent every second he could, and that Hill would let him, visiting Agnes.
When they were about 20 they got married and Jimmy Dale, with help from Hill, built a nice little house across the narrow gravel road from us. We never saw Agnes outside, mother said she had a big chair with a lot of cushions in it that she sat in all the time. Jimmy Dale treated her like a queen. He would get up, cook breakfast before waking Agnes then help her to her chair, bring her food and make sure she had what she needed before going to work. Her mother would check on her during the day and when Jimmy got home she got the royal treatment until they were asleep.
This goes on for about a year and then one day we could hear Agnes yelling at Jimmy. He came out, got in his car and left. He came back several times that day but Agnes wouldn't let him come in, she would yell and curse and he would leave again. After my mother and father got in from work daddy went and talked to him a couple of times and just before dark he left.
Next day he came back and again Agnes wouldn't let him come in. He stood in the yard begging and crying for hours then got in his car and drove away. An hour later he came back and when he got out of the car he had a .410 guage shotgun. He started talking to Agnes again but she responded with the same anger, cursing and yelling. Jimmy Dale started sobbing and yelled that if she didn't take him back he was going to kill himself. Agnes yelled back that she didn't care, go ahead and do it. Jimmy Dale was waving the gun around and it either went of or he pulled the trigger. He screamed, dropped the gun, grabbed his right foot and started hopping around in the yard on his left foot while still holding the other foot with his hands. Somehow he had shot the big toe on his right foot off. All the grown folks who lived close were at work except for Eva and she never came outside. My sister ran down the road about a half mile and got a neighbor who farmed full time to come and take Jimmy Dale to the doctor.
I saw him at the only store in the community a few days later, he was on crutches with his whole foot bandaged up, but he never went back to the house he and Agnes had built and within a month he disappeared from this area and hasn't been back as far as I know. I never saw Agnes again, ever. She died a few years later, heart problems from being so fat.
I couldn't understand why he was so devoted so utterly and entirely to Agnes, especially since she was so big she couldn't even help herself plus her unfortunate looks. Still don't understand it.
Jimmy Dale Plunkett, who lived a couple of miles down the road, was the same age as Agnes. He was a nice looking, well built, young man with pretty much his choice of the girls in the community. One of my sisters had a crush on him but from the time he was 16 or 17 he was desperately and hopelessly in love with Agnes. Agnes was too big to get around much so they never went out but Jimmy Dale spent every second he could, and that Hill would let him, visiting Agnes.
When they were about 20 they got married and Jimmy Dale, with help from Hill, built a nice little house across the narrow gravel road from us. We never saw Agnes outside, mother said she had a big chair with a lot of cushions in it that she sat in all the time. Jimmy Dale treated her like a queen. He would get up, cook breakfast before waking Agnes then help her to her chair, bring her food and make sure she had what she needed before going to work. Her mother would check on her during the day and when Jimmy got home she got the royal treatment until they were asleep.
This goes on for about a year and then one day we could hear Agnes yelling at Jimmy. He came out, got in his car and left. He came back several times that day but Agnes wouldn't let him come in, she would yell and curse and he would leave again. After my mother and father got in from work daddy went and talked to him a couple of times and just before dark he left.
Next day he came back and again Agnes wouldn't let him come in. He stood in the yard begging and crying for hours then got in his car and drove away. An hour later he came back and when he got out of the car he had a .410 guage shotgun. He started talking to Agnes again but she responded with the same anger, cursing and yelling. Jimmy Dale started sobbing and yelled that if she didn't take him back he was going to kill himself. Agnes yelled back that she didn't care, go ahead and do it. Jimmy Dale was waving the gun around and it either went of or he pulled the trigger. He screamed, dropped the gun, grabbed his right foot and started hopping around in the yard on his left foot while still holding the other foot with his hands. Somehow he had shot the big toe on his right foot off. All the grown folks who lived close were at work except for Eva and she never came outside. My sister ran down the road about a half mile and got a neighbor who farmed full time to come and take Jimmy Dale to the doctor.
I saw him at the only store in the community a few days later, he was on crutches with his whole foot bandaged up, but he never went back to the house he and Agnes had built and within a month he disappeared from this area and hasn't been back as far as I know. I never saw Agnes again, ever. She died a few years later, heart problems from being so fat.
I couldn't understand why he was so devoted so utterly and entirely to Agnes, especially since she was so big she couldn't even help herself plus her unfortunate looks. Still don't understand it.
