Disappearing

     "The day he first told me he 
was starting to disappear I
didn't believe him & so he stopped
& held his hand up to the sun & it
was like thin paper in the light &
finally I said, you seem very calm
for a man who is disappearing &
he said it was a relief after all
those years of trying to keep the
pieces of his life in one place. 
Later on, I went to see him
again & as I was leaving, he
put a package in my hand.
     This is the last piece of my 
life, he said. take good care 
of it & then he smiled & was
gone & the room filled with the
sound of the wind & when I
opened the package there was
nothing there & I thought
there must be some mistake 
or maybe I dropped it & I 
got down on my hands &
knees  & looked until the light
began to fade & then slowly
I felt pieces of my life 
fall away & suddenly I 
understood what he meant 
& I lay there for a long 
time crying & laughing at
the same time. "

Brian Andreas
Story People