Gavin Corbett - This Is the Way

I sold it he says. I’m thinking about buying something smaller.

Like a car I says.

Yes he says. Something that suits me needs. I’m keeping an eye out around me.

What are your needs I says.

I’ll tell you he says.

Tell me I says.

Hospitality he says. That’s a big word. What does it mean.

You know what it fucking means I says. Are you thick I says.

Could be he says.

So you want hospitality I says. Living off the hospitality of me here because you’re tired of life on the road.

That’s not it he says. Although for a while it would, what do the people say, it would be nice.

You can fuck off with your nice I says.

Just to get established like he says.

Until I says.

Until he says. Well he says. What is until.

Until is the time you get out of here I says.

No he says. Until is the time before then.

I can tell you it won’t be a long time I says. How long are you planning it to be.

How long does it take to learn he says.

Learn what I says.

The words he says.

What words I says.

Big words he says. Like hospitality. He says I’ll tell you in plain simple words. I want to be seeing what’s in books, I want to learn to read and to write he says.

Yes you do I says.

Serious he says. I want to learn to read and to write.

Who’s going to teach you that I says.

I think I got it in meself he says. Sure don’t we know it’s in the family with you and your father. I just need the little assistance see. I need the bit of help with it he says.

He got up from the couch, went over to the gas rings, over to the window. Moving, going nowhere, not looking at me. He was like my father when he moved. This wide back on him. The way he walked too, lifting and falling, showing he was a heavy crooked man. The limp in his foot made it worse. Sometimes I was shamed of this person it was true but maybe I should not been shamed. I seen another thing with him now the way the light caught him from the side. It was the mouth on him, the lines that led to his lips. I stroked my own face thinking did I have them lines myself but I don’t think I have them.

I says to him do you know.

He held the end of the bed, he turned to me, he says what.

Storytelling man let me tell you something I says.

What he says.

This lady Judith would like to meet you I am sure I says.

I went for a walk down to the university the next day not thinking. I was mooching, the beautiful young ones going by, I says no I will leave. Then I seen this thing. Words on sheets of paper on a wall and I read them, was stopped by them, there was hundreds of them, I read them quick.

They said Freshers Week Table Quiz in aid of Jurgen Clemente at the Phil on why Revive A new approach to worship Love God Embrace God Be Challenged By God Nuzum Hall off White boy soul night featuring Legs Akimbo White Chocolate and Ladyshave Whitebrassgate Theatre Group is holding auditions Wednesday noon for The Cherry Orchard A Play by Anton Chekhov House 6.

Whitebrassgate was the name of the group Judith had set up and today was a Monday, two days the auditions it said.

The Wednesday then myself and Arthur walked to the university together. A bright day, a good day for a start. The city looked different because we were in a certain mood, I imagined it. We walked past the steps of the cathedral where there was a market in the gates where the ladies were selling their cakes. I went up the steps after Arthur and he bought a bag of them. He says I know that other lady I’ve sold her videos and he says thank you missus did you make these yourself. We leaned on the wall to eat the cakes. The lady shouts mind your teeth because there were decorations on the cakes. Across the street I pointed to Arthur the chipper where I bought chips once and the junkies that were hanging about. I said they would not give us trouble but we moved on.

We got to the river and he says it is a fine place. The water was down, it was something I seen before. The sea weed was on the walls of the river and the air smelt of salt, you would breathe it in.

He says how many bridges is there on the river.

I says I don’t know, about ten.

He says the last bridge is a toll bridge, and he pointing over toward where the sea was. He says that was the way I came into Dublin before. Do you remember some of the times. You used come with me.

I only remember the one time I says. I says do you like this part of Dublin.

I do he says.

I says wait until you look at the university, and we went over the river.

The university was different all these last few days. There were great things going on this week. We went in under the arch and both sides were tables and stalls set out said Historical Society and Science Fiction Society and Players. There were flags and balloons, a girl throwing sweets from a bucket. There were girls everywhere with big T shirts pulled over their clothes. The first thing Arthur says was he liked the girls. I says you haven’t seen nothing like these girls before. He nodded at one with red hair wheeling a bicycle. We watched her jump on the saddle and move off in the dark under the arch to the street. Arthur sat down behind the stalls on a black heavy chain swung between posts.

I says wait there.

I went in the shop and I bought two golden delicious.

I says to him these are the cheapest in Dublin.

He says this is something else this chain the work went into it, he was only interested in the chain now.

I says come on we’ll look at the rest of the university.

We walked to the tennis courts where there was a beautiful surface. They were surrounded all sides by buildings and the noise of the ball echoed around and the girls’ breaths was steaming in the cold air. We came out by the grandest building in the university. It looked like a tomb because everything about it was pointed to the sky. It was built for the students were killed fighting in the first war was what I’d learnt. The oldest tree that was in Ireland was on the lawn across from the building and facing the lawn was the red brick building that was the oldest in the university and the library that was the biggest in the world one point.

These are the oldest and biggest buildings in Ireland I says to Arthur.

Behind the red brick building was the library where Judith worked and the museum they kept the bones of dead animals and the field a game of rugby was going on. The grass in the field was in a bad way, it was cut up from rain early in the day. We watched the rugby game ten minutes, we watched them running into sacks of sand.

Arthur says it’s a good game, it’s a carrying game he says.

I says what does that mean.

He says they have to carry the ball.

I says I like it when they kick the ball, you can hear it and feel it in your chest.

He says it’d make you want to join in it would.

I says to him do you think you could run on that foot now.

He says I probably could but I won’t today.

We went to move and turned around and we came facing this fella coming down the path. He was a student and he seen Arthur was smoking. He stopped and he says to Arthur have you got a light.

I do young man says Arthur.

The fella put his cigarette in his mouth and Arthur lifted his lighter. The breeze was coming in from the side.

Move around this way says Arthur.

The fella was a few year younger than me but he was baldy and he had a moustache that came around to meet the bit of his hair that was over his ears.

When the cigarette was lit Arthur says to him do you take drugs.

No says the fella.

Do you not says Arthur.

I’m not interested says the fella.

Neither am I says Arthur.

I’m a Christian says the fella.