Our Souls at Night

6

The next day he worked in the yard in the morning and mowed the lawn and ate lunch and took a short nap and then went down to the bakery and drank coffee with a group of men he met with every other week. One of them a man he didn’t particularly like. The man said, I wish I had your energy.

How’s that?

To stay out all night and then still have enough left over to function the day after.

Louis looked at him for a while.

You know, he said, one of the things I always hear is how any story is safe with you. It goes right in your ears and out your mouth. I wouldn’t want to get the name of a liar and a prevaricator in a little town the size of this one. A reputation like that would just about follow you everywhere.

The man stared at Louis. He looked around at the other men sitting at the table. They were looking anywhere but at him. He stood and walked out of the bakery onto Main Street.

I don’t believe he paid for his coffee, one of the men said.

I’ll take care of it, Louis said. I’ll see you boys later. He we//www.w3.org/1