Old northern forest under the high starry sky. Leaning against the trunk of the old hollow oak, the decrepit priest froze in a dead stillness. His blue lips are half open, his stopped eyes no longer look at this, the visible side of eternity. The emaciated hands are kneeling. To his right on the stones, stumps and dry leaves sit six blind old men, and to the left, facing them – six blind women. Three of them pray all the time and lament. Fourth – absolutely old woman. The fifth, in quiet insanity, is holding a sleeping child on her lap. Six is strikingly young, her flowing hair streaming over her shoulders. Both women and old people are dressed in broad, gloomy, monotonous clothes. All of them, putting their hands on their knees and covering their faces with their hands, are waiting for something. High cemetery trees – yew, weeping willows, cypresses – spread over them their reliable canopy. Darkness.
The blind are talking to each other. They are
concerned about the long absence of a priest. The oldest blind says that the priest is not alone for several days, that he began to be afraid of everything after the doctor died. The priest was worried that the winter might turn out to be long and cold. He was frightened by the sea, he wanted to look at the coastal rocks. The young blind tells that before leaving the priest held her for a long time. He trembled, as if from fear. Then he kissed the girl and left.
“Leaving, he said” Good night! “- recalls one of the blind, they listen to the roar of the sea. The noise of the waves is unpleasant for them. The blind are reminded that the priest wanted to show them the islet on which their shelter is located. That’s why he brought them closer to the seashore. “You can not always wait for the sun under the dormitory roofs,” he said The blind are trying to determine the time of day, some of them feel that they feel the moonlight, feel the presence of the stars The blind ones are the least sensitive Blind want to return to the shelter. far th chimes – twelve strokes, but it’s
midnight or noon, the blind can not understand. Night birds gleefully clap their wings above their heads. One of the Blind offers if the priest did not come back to the shelter, guided by the noise of flowing large river in the offing. Others are going to wait without moving. The blind tell each other where someone came to the island, a young blind person remembers his distant homeland, the sun, mountains, unusual flowers. The wind blows. The leaves are pouring down. It seems to the blind that someone is touching them. They embrace fear. The young blind feels the smell of flowers. This asphodel is a symbol of the kingdom of the dead. One of the blind manages to disrupt several, and the young blind blindly weaves them into his hair. The wind and the rumbling of the waves about the coastal rocks are heard. Through this noise, the blind catch the sound of someone’s approaching steps. This is a shelter dog. She drags one of the blind to a motionless priest and stops. The blind understand that there is a dead man among them, but they do not immediately find out who it is. Women, crying, kneel and pray for the priest. The oldest blind reproaches those, who complained and did not want to go forward, because they tortured the priest. The dog does not depart from the corpse. The blind take their hands. A whirlwind turns dry leaves. A young blind man discerns someone’s distant steps. Large snow falls. Steps approaching. A child of a madman begins to cry. A young blind man takes him in his arms and picks it up so that he can see who is going to them. The steps are approaching, you can hear the leaves rustling under someone’s feet, the rustling of the dress is heard. Steps stop next to a group of blind “Who are you?” the young blind man asks. No answer. “Oh, have mercy on us!” exclaims the oldest. Again silence. Then the desperate cry of the child is heard. Large snow falls. Steps approaching. A child of a madman begins to cry. A young blind man takes him in his arms and picks it up so that he can see who is going to them. The steps are approaching, you can hear the leaves rustling under someone’s feet, the rustling of the dress is heard. Steps stop next to a group of blind “Who are you?” the young blind man asks. No answer. “Oh, have mercy on us!” exclaims the oldest. Again silence. Then the desperate cry of the child is heard. Large snow falls. Steps approaching. A child of a madman begins to cry. A young blind man takes him in his arms and picks it up so that he can see who is going to them. The steps are approaching, you can hear the leaves rustling under someone’s feet, the rustling of the dress is heard. Steps stop next to a group of blind “Who are you?” the young blind man asks. No answer. “Oh, have mercy on us!” exclaims the oldest. Again silence. Then the desperate cry of the child is heard. exclaims the oldest. Again silence. Then the desperate cry of the child is heard. exclaims the oldest. Again silence. Then the desperate cry of the child is heard.
