Brick By Brick

The bricks stared back in my direction. What were they trying to say to me?

“What are you going to do with these bricks?”

“I don’t know, throw them away, I guess.”

The one in the boy’s room was being used to hold the door open, so that one couldn’t be used.

I held this image in my mind, a dream of what would become. I picked up the two bricks, and set them on the ground. The mortar was just enough to bring this to life. Scrape after scrape, brick after brick, the wall was building slowly. I dug the pit, and hung the bucket. It was finished. I sat down, my back against the wall, and, wiping the sweat from my brow, I closed my eyes.

The next day, I went out to see my work of art. I peered down into it, and saw my reflection. It worked! My image shifted on top of the water as it slowly came into view, as though part of a dream sequence.

“Hello, down there!” My voice echoed into the depths of the earth, bouncing off the walls of the hollow pit. “Anyone hear me?”

I sat down, leaning my back against the circular brick wall. The silence was deafening and the solitude was more real than it had ever felt. I breathed in, exhaled, and closed my eyes. My ears heard the sloshing of the water in the well, and I felt the earth under me quietly roar. I stood on my feet, and looking into my newest creation, saw the water level had risen to the top. My mouth hung open, my eyes widened, at this marvelous sight. Instantly, a hummingbird buzzed around my head, looking for a place to land. Finding nothing, it flew away at the speed of light. What’s a life without distractions? I thought to myself. I turned my focus back to the well, and lowered the bucket into the water. The effort put into this construction project had exhausted me, and made me thirsty. I set the bucket on the side of the well, and dipped my hands into it, scooping water into my mouth. It was cold and refreshing, and gave me my energy back. I splashed a handful of water on my face, and lifted my eyes to the sun to dry it away. The summer heat and warmth was inviting, and exactly what I needed.

“You down there? When are you coming back in the house? Everyone is looking for you.”

I looked up at him, pondering my next step. “I’m not sure. I kinda like it down here at the moment.”

“Suit yourself, then.” He went back in the house, slamming the sliding glass door hard enough that it slid open again, leaving a one-inch gap. The dog had walked out with him, and after seeing me in the yard, climbed down the stairs from the back porch, and began to run circles around me. Realizing he was circling something new, he stopped, and put his front paws up on the side of the bricks, laying them on the edge of the well.

“You need some too, don’t you?” I laughed, and put down a full bucket for him. Within seconds, he was done, and, still panting from his run, he laid down in the yellowed grass.

“Life is always exciting for you, isn’t it?” I patted his head, and rubbed his ears. He laid them flat against his head, and gazed at me with affection. I looked at what I had built for myself, and was exceedingly glad. It truly was never too late to start all over again.

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