Mauro J Maldonado

Old Men and their ways

The house was quiet. There was a time when that quiet was unbearable with the weight of what was missing, and the memories of the past added to my pain. But as with all things, I got used to it. Shuffling around the house doing my daily chores was calming in a way. At least it broke the quiet that lurked around every corner waiting for me to let my guard down. Take a shower, put on clothes, eat, wait for the nurse, exercise, eat, take a shower, go to sleep. That is my life, every day the same routine. I swear if you look hard enough you can see the path I take through the house every day in the carpet. There are some hallways I avoid, not because of any bumps or steps that could fell an old man like me, but because of the faces on the wall that stare at me, forever smiling, laughing about jokes long gone. I can’t see them and be reminded of what I have lost, especially today.