Original Title: "L'homme de Brive"
Year: 1972
It was warm that day
The dog was sleeping in the dust of the yard
She was busy doing the laundry in the kitchen
When the light changed
Standing in the doorway
A man she could not see very well
Thinking like an idiot:
I did not hear the dog
Then wiped her hands
They were fresh with soap
He says: "After the bridge
I almost lost my way
He came in for good.
Told her: I've been sent by the tall one
But I apologize, I've been walking all the way from Brive
And without knowing, here I am, catching you
In laundry
She says: With those heats
We dirty so much more that we perspire
If we were counting our hours
We would believe there was no end to it
And then, I forget everything
I haven't even proffered you anything
But one does not refuse a drink
When one has walked all that fragment
Sat down on the bench
Told her she was lucky
For the tall one
She poured him some wine
Felt embarrassed of the sudden silence
He was giving himself some time
Emptied his drink with small sips
Smiled from time to time
To her who was staying up
Then says: How warm it is
We are both alone, or just as much.
She says: I have lost my man
It's been fourteenth months soon
She made him her womanly face
Who knew how to wait for someone to pass
He had his hands of wool
His smile, his eyes of ashes
His breath
Then he came back to the bench
While she was putting back her dress
How so, for the tall one, you know
I have to tell you about it in sequence
She says: "There is indeed a tall guy
It's the elder son of the neighbors
You'll take the path
Just after the white wall..."
