Hair Rising, Heir Raising, Erasing
Abigail Bates
Illegitimate daughter of Abraham Wilton Cough and Amelia Bates, Abigail was not conceived out of love. She is a pure mistake, simply made by her respective parents out of drunkenness. Despite her controversial conception, even unborn she is a blessing to all.
To her guilt ridden father, the mere fact that she is the growingly visible result of his action within the belly of the Widow Bates caused his nagging unrest and prophetic nightmare on his death bed. Her unseen presence pushes the proud Abraham first to admit that he did commit mistakes during his lifetime. With her mother playing the spiritual guide to the departing soul of Abraham, they help him to go from admission to making amends, passing by the acknowledgement of his errors.
‘Hair Rising, Heir Raising, Erasing’ is a tragi-comedy of errors: Wilton Cough’s ones with his heirs to be, his very own family. The play on words in the title is truly evocative of his entire nightmarish journey. It asks fundamental questions about how we raise our children. Are we partial to one and not the other? Are we imposing our views on them, destroying their talents in the making in brutal psychological ways? Did we simply show love to the ones we love when we had the chance of an entire lifetime to do so? Were we so head strongly proud and confident we were right that we hurt many in the making, in our path?
Home truths hurt. Abigail hurts the still living day life of Abraham. She is one he has yet to confess out loud to his lawfully wedded wife, minutes away from his death. However his wounded guts managed to find the strength to do so because the Angel that Abigail is, pushes is dying soul back to consciousness, giving him a short window to correct his errors, to do some sort of serious erasing.
Abigail’s character works as the sum of errors of any put to right. From refusing to acknowledge her as his own child, Abraham, meeting her finally, is mesmerised by her Angelic Being. She embodies more than what his legitimate sons achieved to be in their own after-lives.
In his premonitory feverish dream prior to his death, Abraham is allowed to see a night where the dead are rising. It constitutes a terrifying journey for him where the fate of his illegitimate daughter provides him with a much needed breather.
Abigail’s life is described to him by her proud mother Amelia within the Mausoleum that contains her daughter’s remains. Suitably impressed and chastised, Wilton-Cough expresses the wish to have done better with his own life: his dying wish. He is granted it by being allowed to be conscious for his remaining minutes of expiring life.
If that Angelic character brings about the redemption of her own father prior to his death, she is also a blessing in many ways to her human mother, the lonely good sweetheart that is Amelia Bates. For Abigail provides her finally with the family, the widow had craved for the many years of her childless marriage. She is a providential heavenly gift who repairs Harry Bates’ lack of progeniture to his loving wife on his funeral night.
Was Harry given a last death wish to his own soul and was the result little blessed Abigail given to Amelia? If you do not know, Amelia’s life is turning completely around in consequences of the birth of her only child. From lonely, she becomes a mother to all the tiny mistakes of Wilton Town, to all its unwanted children given to her big heart to be cared for.
The humble home of Amelia Bates provides the love to numerous souls created by mistakes, and offers to them the tools for a better future. The exchange is love for love. The Widow Bates is loved and respected by all for eternity. Her grave bestows a eulogy and his constantly decorated by flowers.
Abigail when born ends up on Amelia’s doorsteps where she pretends to find her upon the forever forgiving Father Odell’s plan. From that point on, the Widow finds many babies on her doorsteps which her heart adopts without question.
The questionable existence of Abigail fades in the fact that she is. Angelic from the start or from her human’s life cannot be argued either way. She is an Angel.
Scarce, yet forever in the background of Abraham’s conscience, his daughter only says one sentence to him:
Abigail, spreading her white wings majestically before her father took his bony hands within hers then whispered before pushing him into the deep hollow that was her own grave within the mausoleum,-It is quarter to three. Your wish is granted, Soul, however you have only minutes to repair what you can