PART OF THE GOODNIGHT FOREVER SERIES OF SHORT STORIES
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| the sad man / individual print edition of 6 / etching, drypoint and aquatint |
Once, there was a man who decided to go
for a swim in a lake. After a few strokes, the man felt very thirsty
and so he drank the lake in a few vigorous gulps. Among the dying
creatures of the lake, the man spotted a fish for which he suddenly
felt great affection. The man felt that if the fish were a man, it
would somehow do the same things he did, and they would be of the
same opinion about many things in life. Urgently, the man grabbed a
cloud and squeezed it until rain poured out onto his fish. The fish
swam happily in his new puddle.
Barely did the man have time to enjoy
his new friend when he spotted a desperate bird at his feet.
Apparently, it had fallen out of the cloud. It was a good kind of
bird, no doubt, and the man felt that if it were only a little bit
cheerier, it would be great company. So he broke a nearby tree into
many branches and built the bird a beautiful nest. The bird smiled
and plopped right inside.
Hardly did the man get a good look at
his new friend when he heard cries. He looked around and saw a family
of squirrels scattered about on the ground. Apparently, they had
fallen out of the tree. The little one was so sweet that the man’s
heart nearly broke. He looked around but there were no more trees
around. Just a puddle with the fish, and a nest with the bird. And so
the man sat down among the squirrels and wept with them, cursing his
helplessness between roaring sobs.
