Heaven For Mela
Władek was my neighbour. His house lay distant from mine, but I liked to walk over, along the dirt road between the ponds. Władek’s wife was laid up in hospital, having just given birth. I was supposed to have gone over a day earlier, but it was so sweet, sleeping on the bales in the warm kitchen at the school, that it was early Wednesday morning when I finally made my way there.
The water had flooded the road between the ponds. It was deep — reaching half-way up my calves. I held my shoes in my hands and put them on only when I got to the dry grass. I could see Władek from afar — sitting on a chair near the well, paring potatoes.
‘Making dinner?’ I asked, drawing close.
‘Yep,’ he said.
‘I brought some fresh tomatoes.’
‘That’s good.’
‘I’ll set them on the porch.’
‘R
