i am sorry about your loss, joe.
my what?
i am sorry the old lady is dead.
i am sorry too. i liked her a lot.
was there any kind of a funeral service? i am sorry i missed it.
no, i just chucked her the swamp, like she always told me to.
i see. i don’t know what the board of health might think, but i suppose what they don’t know won’t hurt them.
i took her out a ways. she always wanted big al to have her, cause they went back a ways.
yes, they must have been the two oldest inhabitants of the swamp.
well, joe, what are you going to do? i suppose you will stay on at the store with mr higgins. you are a big boy now, you should be able to take care of yourself. what exactly did you want to see me about?
i wanted to ask you something.
and what was that?
i don’t know if you can help me, but i don’t know anybody else to ask.
yes?
the old lady before she died, she told me something she wanted me to do. i mean, she told me about it before, but just before she left, she sort of - what do you call it -?
emphasized it?
that’s it . empha -a - sized it.
and what was it that she emphasied?
she wanted me to tear down the world and build it up again.
i see. rather a tall order.
i wasn’t really all that sure what she meant by that.
wiser men than you or i might well wonder what she meant.
i would hate to disappoint her. i feel like she is still watching over me, and i would hate her to think i was not trying my best to please her.
tear down the world and build it up again, eh? did she give you any hint as to how t she wanted to build it up again?
well, sir, i think she tried to, but i am not sure i exactly understood her.
i can believe that. no offense to you, joe, but her pronouncements could be a bit on the murky side. like all great prophets and philosophers.
do you have a book you could give me, or maybe i could get one from the library.
that is an excellent idea, joe. i think i know a couple of books you could ask miss carter at the library about. here, let me write the titles down for you.
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