The Ladder

Ages 12-15

Frimmy holds the ladder for her father at the shul window, and does not look up.

It is an ordinary ladder, aluminum, with rubber feet. It stands on the dry concrete under the high window, with its top against the wall. Her father has tested it with his hand. He told her to stand at the bottom, and hold the sides, and keep her feet on the ground.

She holds the sides with both hands. He goes up. She feels each step come down through the rails, and stop, and come again.

She looks at the rungs. She looks at the first, and the second, and the one he is standing on. She just keeps her eyes on the metal, a little above her hands.

At the top, he is quiet. She hears the click of the old cover, and the small ring of the metal against the glass. Something is being unscrewed.

"Here," he says.

She looks up, then. His hand is out over the rail, with a bulb in it. It is round, and dusty, with the filament black.

She lets go with one hand, and takes it. It is lighter than she thought.

He comes down, slowly, step by step, and she holds the rails until his feet are on the ground.

She carries the old bulb out of the hall, carefully, in both hands, and drops it in the bin by the door.