The Ledge (1957--a Sketch((Now in Spanish and English))
The Ledge
[1957] It was during this time when I would come to visit Mike Reassert, mostly in the summers, but all year round for the most part (I was ten years old back then, Mike was nine). Sometimes it was early in the mornings and I鈥檇 throw rocks at his window to wake him up, but Mike would never wake up that easy. Oh no, it was not so simple, He slept like an old rock, similar to an old man that dozes off to sleep and it takes a knock on the head to wake him up, or two or three; all in all, Mike never had a hard time sleeping for sure. He had a bed close to a window, and they had a one room apartment, that is to say, there were two beds on one side of the room, a rope dividing Mike from his parents, and a blanket used as a divider. Thus, Mike slept right next to the blanket, and his parents but a few feet away, beyond the blanket, against the wall. There was a small separate kitchen, with a corner table, room from two people to seat, one at each corner. And in the main room were an old sofa chair, a standup ashtray, and a black and white TV set.
As I was about to say: but then neither did I have a hard time sleeping back then, I suppose, with all the energy we had he and I, we slept well when it came nighttime; yes, ah, yes, we exerted our kobe shoes energy on our daily adventures, it was a wonder where we found all that vigor in the first place.
In any case, I would鈥æ”fter having thrown the rock鈥擨 would, figure, I perhaps should throw another rock; if I had to throw another rock, but I was always a ting apprehensive I鈥檇 bust the window鈥攊n consequence, I told myself: 鈥楪o to: 鈥楶lan B鈥?鈥攜es indeed, and that is what I did, most of the times. And so through the front building door I鈥檇 go, climb the three flights of stairs, rush through the hallways, open a few more doors on the way, so the light would chase the dark away鈥? (There was a pale-smell, of moss like odor in the building, as if it had old wet books鈥æ”t one time鈥攊n there, in there for a hundred-years and so, and when they鈥檇 dried out, they had left something behind; the smell disturb me, yet, somehow I got acclimated to it鈥攌ind of; I say, I almost became unconscious to this acclimation process鈥攈ow possible, I don鈥檛 know, or perhaps I do, that is to say, anyone that can work in a slaughterhouse, as I did some years later, and not smell the putrid-ness of it, has gotten acclimated to the maximum: so it is believable. Then I鈥檇 lay open the window at the end of the hallway, on the third floor, next to Mike鈥檚 apartment, overlooking the dumpster. There, there to his right was a ledge, a fat, not fat, a wide heavy looking kind of ledge, not too disturbing, and so I鈥檇 step out on it, and over to the side was his window, Mike鈥檚 window, and Mike鈥檚 head was usually by the window; or under his covers, and I normally could tell his shape, so if he wasn鈥檛 in bed, he鈥檇 be in the kitchen or bathroom in the hallway and I鈥檇 wait until he came back in the apartment.
After a few taps on the window, Mike would normally wake up鈥æ”ook once or twice to see if it was me (who else), rub his eyes, look surprised and open the window (the few times he didn鈥檛 his father or mother would say, 鈥檡our buddy鈥檚 at the damn window again, can鈥檛 he use the door for gods鈥ake!鈥欌€? and he鈥檇 get dressed, and we鈥檇 go running off to the wild-blue-yonder again: which was really some place, any place throughout the city of St. Paul, Minnesota. And accordingly that鈥檚 how it was: we were both impatient, and waiting to be teenagers. And then when we were, well, that鈥檚 another story.
Written 2002/revised 8/2005
In Spanish
Translated Nancy Penaloze
La Repisa
[1957] Fue durante este tiempo cuando yo venia para visitar a Miguel Reassert, sobre todo en los veranos, pero todo el a帽o principalmente (yo ten铆a diez a帽os aquel entonces, Miguel ten铆a nueve a帽os). A veces era temprano por las ma帽anas y yo lanzaba piedras en su ventana para despertarlo, pero Miguel nunca se despertaba tan f谩cil. Ah no, no era tan simple, 脡l dorm铆a como una vieja roca, similar a un anciano que se queda dormido y necesita un pu帽etazo a la cabeza para despertarlo, o dos o tres; en general, Miguel nunca ten铆a un tiempo dif铆cil para dormir seguro. 脡l ten铆a una cama cerca de una ventana, y ellos ten铆an una habitaci贸n de apartamento, es decir, hab铆a dos camas a un lado de la habitaci贸n, una cuerda que divide a Miguel de sus padres, y una manta usada como un divisor. As铆, Miguel dorm铆a al lado derecho de la manta, y sus padres unos pies m谩s lejos, m谩s all谩 de la manta, contra la pared. Hab铆a una peque帽a cocina separada, con una mesa de esquina, el espacio para sentarse dos personas, una en cada esquina. Y en la habitaci贸n principal hab铆a un viejo sof谩, un cenicero levantado, y un televisor blanco y negro.
Como estuve a punto de decir: pero en aquel entonces tampoco yo ten铆a un tiempo dificultoso para dormir, supongo, con toda la energ铆a que nosotros ten铆amos 茅l NBA Basketball Shoes y yo, dorm铆amos bien cuando venia la noche; s铆, ah, s铆, ejerc铆amos nuestra energ铆a en nuestras aventuras diarias, era esto una maravilla donde encontr谩bamos todo aquel vigor en primer lugar.
De cualquier modo 鈥?Y pod铆a-despu茅s de que haber lanzado la piedra-Yo me imagino, yo quiz谩s deber铆a lanzar otra piedra; si lanzar otra piedra, pero yo siempre estaba un poco temeroso, yo podr铆a romper la ventana - en consecuencia, me dije: 鈥淰aya鈥? 鈥淧lan B 1鈥?- s铆 de verdad, y es lo que hice, la mayor parte de las veces. Y entonces yo iba a trav茅s de la puerta delante del edificio, sub铆a las tres escaleras a prisa, precipit谩ndome por los vest铆bulos, abr铆a unas puertas m谩s en el camino, entonces la luz persegu铆a el oscuro camino-. (Hab铆a un olor p谩lido, como olor de humedad en el edificio, como si tuviesen libros mojados 鈥?de una 茅poca lejana 鈥?dentro de all铆 durante cien a帽os y as铆, y cuando ellos se hab铆an secado, ellos hab铆an olvidado algo; el olor me molesta, todav铆a, de alg煤n modo me fui aclimatando a esto- de alguna forma ; digo, casi me hice inconsciente a este proceso de aclimataci贸n - como fue posible, no s茅, o quiz谩s lo s茅, es decir, alguien que puede trabajar en un matadero, como hice algunos a帽os m谩s tarde, y no oler el p煤trido de esto, se ha aclimatado al m谩ximo: entonces es cre铆ble. Entonces yo pod铆a abrir la ventana al final del vest铆bulo, en el tercer piso, cerca al apartamento de Miguel, pasando por alto el basurero. All铆, all铆 a su derecha hab铆a una repisa, una fuerte, no fuerte, una amplia y pesada clase de repisa, no demasiado inquietante, y entonces yo me trepaba sobre ello, donde estaba la ventana de Miguel, y la cabeza de Miguel estaba usualmente por la ventana; o bajo sus cubiertas, y yo normalmente pod铆a decir su forma, as铆 茅l no estuviera en la cama, 茅l estar铆a en la cocina o el cuarto de ba帽o en el vest铆bulo y yo esperaba hasta que 茅l volviera al apartamento.
隆Despu茅s de unos tropiezos sobre la ventana, Miguel normalmente despertaba, daba una mirada encima jordan basketball shoes un par de veces para ver si era yo (qui茅n m谩s), frotando sus ojos, miraba sorprendido y abr铆a la ventana (las pocas veces que 茅l no lo hizo, su padre o madre dec铆an, 鈥渢u compinche en la maldita ventana otra vez, no puede 茅l usar la puerta por providencia鈥ien! ") y 茅l se vest铆a, y nosotros nos escap谩bamos hacia el 鈥渟alvaje azul all谩 " otra vez: que era realmente alg煤n lugar, cualquier lugar en alguna parte de la ciudad de Saint Pa煤l, Minnesota. Y en consecuencia esto es como era: ambos 茅ramos tan impacientes, y esperando ser adolescentes. Y luego cuando nosotros fuimos, bien, esto es otra historia.
Escrito 2002/revisado 8/2005
Poet/Author Dennis Siluk, see his website for books and travels at: http://dennissiluk.tripod.com or go to http://www.amazon.com
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