Gertrude’s Garden

A WORK IN PROGRESS

By

Julia Méndez García

CHARACTERS

GERTRUDE …………………………………………………………………………… The Mother

OPHELIA ………………………………………………………………………………… The Mystic

BABY ……………………………………………………………………… The Lover, The Queen

BROWN EYES ………………………………………………………… The Huntress, The Sage

FRECKLES ……………………………………………………………………………… The Maiden

A garden with patio furniture in front of a house. GERTRUDE lies on a hammock. 4 women with their names written on their chests (OPHELIA, BABY, FRECKLES and BROWN EYES) sit on lawn chairs. They embroider or knit or mend clothes. Maybe they churn butter. I don’t care, you choose.

OPHELIA

Nothing ever ends poetically. It ends and we turn it into poetry. All that blood was never once beautiful. It was just red.

BABY

Oh, Jesus Christ, will you shut up?

OPHELIA

I’m sorry?

BABY

I can’t with your bullshit. It’s “poetry this” and “Sylvia Plath that” and “Mary Shelley was a genius” and yaddah yaddah yaddah. Shut up!

OPHELIA

Wow, okay, um, harsh much?

BABY

Someone had to say it. They agree with me. They’re just scared of hurting your feelings.

OPHELIA looks at BROWN EYES and FRECKLES, they look at each other awkwardly.

OPHELIA

Is this true?

BROWN EYES

Lovely weather we’ve been having, isn’t it?

FRECKLES

Yes. Perfect weather for the wash.

BROWN EYES

Ophelia? Did you say something?

GERTRUDE (to the audience)

Welcome! Are you confused? Good. They are too. They just don’t know it yet. They sit. And hate and love and cry. They laugh at each other and with each other. They tell stories. They think about me. They talk about me. They forget I am here. They married my sons. And my sons left us. They are my daughters. They hate each other and they hate themselves. But we are all we have. So we keep trying.

FRECKLES

I think I’m going grey.

BROWN EYES

Gray with an a or grey with an e?

FRECKLES

Does it matter?

BABY

It matters.

OPHELIA

It matters.

FRECKLES

Grey. With an e.

BABY

Ohhhh.

OPHELIA

Ohhhhhhh.

BROWN EYES

That’s not good.

FRECKLES

Why? What’s the difference??

BABY

You’ll see.

FRECKLES

No. Tell me.

OPHELIA

We’re not supposed to.

FRECKLES

Is it bad?

GERTRUDE

Not necessarily.

		BABY, OPHELIA and BROWN EYES nod profusely.

FRECKLES

Shit.

GERTRUDE (to the audience)

They came here. One by one. On a Monday, on a Thursday. On a bank holiday. My sons brought them and they stayed and when my sons left they still stayed. Good riddance. We bake cakes that never end and knit patchwork quilts for each other. I tell them stories I never lived and they try to remember their own mothers. That was long ago, though. Back when the swallows still came around and we could hear the nightingales singing. Sometimes we stay up and watch the sunrise, then I make them breakfast and we cry together.

BROWN EYES and FRECKLES look at each other. They whisper something indiscernible. They are clearly having a discussion.

BROWN EYES

Baby?

BABY

Yeah?

BROWN EYES

We wanted to know if–

FRECKLES

Just ask her.

BROWN EYES

We were wondering–

OPHELIA

Oh, Jesus Christ. Just say it.

BABY

The answer is no.

FRECKLES

Really?

BABY

Why wouldn’t it be?

BROWN EYES

I don’t know, I guess we thought that maybe..

BABY

No. Why would I?

GERTRUDE

I don’t either.

OPHELIA

Jesus. I keep forgetting you’re there.

GERTRUDE

I know, darling.

OPHELIA

I’m sorry.

GERTRUDE

It’s okay

BABY

You know what I do miss? I miss the swallows.

FRECKLES

But how come you don’t..?

BABY

Why should I? He doesn’t.

FRECKLES

You don’t know that.

OPHELIA

Don’t we?

FRECKLES

No, I mean, I don’t know. Isn’t that a bit cruel?

BABY

So is life.

FRECKLES

Wow.

        FRECKLES giggles. BROWN EYES elbows her a little but giggles too.

BABY

What?

BROWN EYES

Nothing.

BABY

What?!

FRECKLES

I just think it’s funny.

BROWN EYES

We just think it’s funny how you hate her bullshit quotes and then you come out with something like that.

FRECKLES

“Life is cruel”.

OPHELIA

They have a point.

GERTRUDE (to the audience)

No one taught them how to be. They came here one at a time and they have always been here. They are sisters to each other and they are friends. They love and hate each other as they love and hate me and they love and hate themselves. Hope is an almost forgotten feeling. We try to forget the past because all we have is the now. We will never end and yet we have no future. I think I’ve always been here but I don’t recall. I think I was somewhere else and then I was here. There was someone else before me and I think I knew her but I never met her. Have I confused you more? I’m sorry, although I think I meant to. We will all disappear after you walk out but we will never stop being. And after we’re gone someone else will take our place. We sing folk songs and wash bedsheets and churn butter. Maybe they will too. Would you like to? Never mind that now. We are here and so are you. I think they’re fighting, they’re good sisters. They try to love each other.

BABY

So you’re saying I’m a hypocrite.

FRECKLES

Well, no, not really.

OPHELIA

But they’re not saying you’re not not a hypocrite.

BROWN EYES

Dude, not exactly helping.

OPHELIA

Not exactly trying to.

GERTRUDE

Ophelia, dove, it’s late afternoon now, shouldn’t you be getting down to the river?

OPHELIA

I thought I’d skip it today, not feeling like it.

FRECKLES

You can’t do that! Can she do that?

BROWN EYES

I don’t know.

BABY

I mean, maybe?

GERTRUDE

She can do what she likes.

FRECKLES

Whoa.

BROWN EYES

Whoa.

BABY

Won’t that mess it up?

OPHELIA

So?

BABY

No, listen, I’m down. I just, yeah, no, just, why?.

OPHELIA

Don’t feel like it. Who cares?

FRECKLES

Are you scared?

OPHELIA

I’m tired.

FRECKLES

How long has it been?

OPHELIA

I don’t know. Were you counting?

FRECKLES

Was I supposed to?

BROWN EYES

(to FRECKLES)

No.

(to OPHELIA)

You might regret it.

OPHELIA

Oh, fuck you.

GERTRUDE

Ophelia!

OPHELIA

Sorry. But fuck her. Regret? Seriously?

BROWN EYES

I’m just saying.

BABY

Don’t push it.

BROWN EYES

Fine.

GERTRUDE

Ophelia?

OPHELIA

What?! Ugh. Fine. Sorry.

			(long beat.)

FRECKLES

Ophelia?

OPHELIA

What?

FRECKLES

Sorry… I just– do you regret it? Like, actually?

OPHELIA

Going to the river? No, I mean, I don’t think so?

FRECKLES

No, I meant–

OPHELIA

Ohh.

FRECKLES

Yeah.

OPHELIA

No, I don’t regret that either. Why? Do you think I should?

FRECKLES

No, I mean, I don’t know. It’s none of my business.

BABY

I do. Think that, I mean.

For me, at least.

		OPHELIA reaches for BABY’s hand.

OPHELIA

I miss the swallows.

FRECKLES

Were they beautiful?

BROWN EYES

Are we?

GERTRUDE

Only if you want to be.