In a modern house
a
living-room
an easy
chair Pahn
is reading
comfortably
He hears voices from the next room—
a classroom
the professor speaking sternly and in anger
to a mother and child
who have done something wrong
“And you are to
blame”
The professor says to
the mother
“Now you must take your child out of the class
and I suggest you go away for a while
and think about this”
Pahn hears the door open
to the adjacent foyer
and listens as the nearly distraught
mother
speaks to the little girl
“You are going to stay with Pahn while I go out”
she repeats
“You stay with Pahn until I get back”
and he hears the
outside door close
Pahn sets down his book calmly
and gets up
He walks into the foyer
and to the front door
which he opens to look out where
he sees the mother
trying
desperately
to negotiate the
yard in her car
There are many obstacles
and Pahn wanders how
and why
she parked her car there
He closes the door
He feels concern
for the mother
but is certain
that she will be all right
He knows
that he cannot help her
Instead
he turns to the
child
He kneels down
in front of her
He sees she is on the
verge of tears
He opens his arms to her
He is not sure if
she will come to him
because she doesn’t know him
but she trusts
him immediately
and rushes into
his embrace
The two go
into the living room
where they sit
down near the door to the kitchen
There
while she plays safely and
happily on the floor
Pahn watches her
with the greatest confidence
and
contentment knowing
that if he can
only do
one thing
it is
to comfort a child
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