Sunday, May 3, 2015

Rearview Mirror

Isaac Greenbaum, a dry cleaner by profession, lived in Manhattan.  Like most New Yorkers in The New Age of Caution, Bob wore a neck-and-shoulder-mounted rearview mirror so he could be on the lookout for muggers attacking from behind. 

Isaac walked sluggishly one morning after being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer.  He looked in his rearview mirror out of habit and saw the Grim Reaper, carrying his sickle and dressed in black robe and hood, gaining on him.  Isaac knew he was going to die, but he hadn't made any preparations.  He broke into a run, the Reaper in hot pursuit as the pair weaved in and out of pedestrian traffic.

The Grim Reaper was just a few feet behind the terminal Greenbaum when Isaac ducked into the first door on his right, which was the entrance to The Laugh Track Comedy Club on the upper east side.  The Reaper stopped dead in his tracks.  He wasn't allowed inside any establishment where mirth ruled the day.

For the next twenty years, Isaac Greenbaum lived in The Laugh Track Comedy Club, not daring to leave.  He occasionally peeked through the front door, frequently noting the Grim Reaper standing across the street, tapping his right foot in frustration.

During his long tenure as janitor for the Laugh Track, Isaac came to a startling realization: he hadn't died.  In fact, he felt great.  Constant laughing at the onstage comedians had destroyed the awful tumor that had claimed rights to his liver.  He supposed he could have safely left since he'd been cured, but he enjoyed the simple, easy life of sweeping and laughing.

A rearview mirror and endless comedy had saved the life of Isaac Greenbaum.

by William Hammett

SITEMAP

Home
About
Index of Short Stories by William Hammett
Richard Brautigan
Ianthe Elizabeth Brautigan
Richard Brautigan Timeline
The Richard Brautigan Library
Articles on Richard Brautigan
Resources for Researching Richard Brautigan's Life and Work
The Prose Style of Richard Brautigan
Books about Richard Brautigan
The Novels of Richard Brautigan
The Short Stories of Richard Brautigan
Poetry Collections by Richard Brautigan
The Uncollected Poetry of Richard Brautigan
The Unpublished Poetry of Richard Brautigan
The Ghost of Richard Brautigan
William Hammett
Contact

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.