Prayers for the Living Read Online Free

what was going on with his accident.”
    â€œWith Manny’s fall?”
    â€œNo, with the president of the United States. With George Gershwin. Of course, with your Manny.”
    â€œWith my Manny it was an accident.”
    â€œI was there, I could see, a man trips, a man stumbles, but I mean he’s all right? He’s not sick? A man just doesn’t all of a sudden tumble down after all these years for no reason. Look, everybody has reasons but not everybody falls down. So tell me his reasons? What’s the matter? He’s got a disease? He’s got troubles with you-know-who?”
    â€œI told you, nothing. He’s got nothing. Nothing is wrong. He told me earlier in the day he had a little headache.”
    â€œHeadache? It’s a tumor, maybe?”
    â€œPlease darling, I told you, it was nothing. He had a little headache. In the hospital, after his accident, lying there, he told me everything. Ever since his father died, a long time ago, we’ve been very close, you know . . .”
    â€œI’ve heard, I’ve noticed.”
    â€œSo you’ve noticed. So I’ve been like his concudante, do you know what I mean?”
    â€œDo I know? Do I know? Don’t I have children of my own? Don’t I hear all the stories, all the troubles?”
    â€œIf they talk to you, you’re lucky. If they don’t, you’re happy.”
    â€œI couldn’t agree more, Mrs. Bloch. So tell.”
    â€œWhat what?”
    â€œYou’re telling me about his accident.”
    â€œHis fall.”
    â€œHis fall. And later his summer and his winter and his spring? Keep talking.”
    â€œVery funny. Summer, winter, whatever. I’m telling you he had his summer later in life than most boys, with this business he was making. And good for him, because early in his life, times were rough for him when he was a little boy, when my Jacob passed away . . .”
    â€œThat’s the beginning you were talking about?”
    â€œThat’s it.”
    â€œSo you’ll tell me that later. But now I want to hear the middle. The part I saw. Because even though I saw it I didn’t know what I was seeing.”
    â€œTypical.”
    â€œWhat do you mean, darling, typical? You think I’m blind or something? I was there, I was looking down from the upstairs . . .”
    â€œFrom up there we get a good view, don’t we, Mrs. Pinsker?”
    â€œThe grandmothers see everything, sure. So I was up in the balcony watching, like in the old days, when I’m up there watching the stage show at the Roxy . . .”
    â€œLooking down at the stage show, of course. So you don’t think I remember those things? And let me tell you what I remember . . .”
    â€œI’ll let you.”
    â€œThank you, darling. And I’ll tell you. What I remember is looking down from the balcony of the old shul on my old street, peeking from behind the curtain they put up around us to keep us ladies from looking down.”
    â€œThey put up a curtain?”
    â€œYou were so far ahead of everybody you never had no curtain? In some places I hear, of course I never saw, they had a wall. And you could make eyeholes and peep through. They had their old ways. In the old country. And some were not so bad and some were not so good. I’m telling you, my Manny banged his nose against it when it came time for him to stay downstairs with the men. He didn’t want to leave me, the boy was such a good one. And he had to go to school? Same trouble. He didn’t want to leave me. Such a good boy. But what you were asking, that comes later and you were asking about his accident.”
    â€œHis fall.”
    â€œIt was an accident.”
    â€œBut it comes first, not later.”
    â€œFirst I’m telling, but in his life it comes later.”
    â€œDon’t confuse me, just tell me.”
    â€œI’m telling you. Just the way he told me.”
    â€œHis