38 The Meadow Something’s Bugging Me Shellie Richards The Metamorphosis is a novella written by Franz Kafka and published in 1915. In the story, Gregor Samsa, a salesman, wakes to find himself transformed into a roach/beetle. His sister Grete (pronounced Greta) is compassionate at first, bringing him food and even defending him. But she soon tires of Gregor’s bug-state. This is a story told from Grete’s POV set in contemporary time. The homemade poster sign on the door said, SOMETHING BUGGING YOU? ALL ARE WELCOME in large, black Sharpie print. Grete Samsa walked inside the plain, one-story brick building and straight over to the folding table with coffee and doughnuts. She poured a cup of coffee and mixed in a bit of dry powder creamer, took a sip, spat it out in the garbage can, and tossed out the remainder. Nothing tasted good anymore. Across the room, people had already begun to sit in a large circle, shifting their fannies in the metal folding chairs and greeting one another. Grete picked at the doughnuts, mostly fresh. Glazed, jelly, powder, and sour-cream cake. Nothing looked good. Empty-handed, Grete walked slowly to the circle of chairs, her balance off today, though she couldn’t say why. “Welcome, everyone!” Max, a Unitarian minister who led the support group, spoke. “I see a lot of familiar faces around the room today. Is there anyone here who is new?” An old black man raised his hand. “Welcome!” everyone said in unison, and Grete thought the collective voice sounded cultlike, something out of Waco, Texas. “A couple of housekeeping notes before we get started. There’s a signup sheet for snacks on the table next to the doughnuts; if anyone would like to bring something next time,
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