29 An Old Man

An old man wants nothing more from life than to become the ladder by which he has made his living.

Each night before his wife calls him to dinner he lies rigid against the wall of their home, nor is he moved until his wife comes outside and says O my, someone has left a ladder by the house.  How glad my husband will be when I tell him what I have found.

Soon enough the old man will not come to dinner unless his wife uses him to scale the wall of their house.  But she has loved him long enough and every night she carries him to bed and caresses his cold metal rungs.  Every morning she bathes him and sets him up against one of the outdoor walls.

In time her efforts are not enough, and soon the old man is too worn and rusted to be moved.  I must bury my husband, she says, for he has given me all the days of his life, and I can do no more with him.

The wife is a strong woman and lives on a good many years.  One day she says to herself, I think the house needs painting.  I will go to the garage and fetch the ladder by which my dear husband made his living.

When she gets there, she finds an old man hung up by a nail.  Help me down, he says.  And once more, the good woman is warmed by the company of a good husband, who remains with her for the rest of her days.

* Photograph inspired by the work of Claudine Metrick and Kevin Calisto