Rooftops

As the days went by, my fascination grew concerning the old house and its history. I could recall every ripple in the original glass of the windows, and how many steps it took to get to the next floor. Every detail lived in my memory. Yet, I knew it wasn't mine.

Still there is a certain sort of magic in the ordinary things of life. If someone had told me months ago that I would find that magic standing here on the rooftop of an old house in my town, I would have said they were crazy.

Susan certainly thought I was crazy for working on the steep roof. She kept asking me if I was sure I knew what I was doing. I was beginning to get annoyed at her lack of confidence in me. But, at the same time, I knew she was worried that I would get up there and fall off or something, and then she would be knee-deep in lawsuits.

She didn't have to worry. My thoughts about learning how to do some basic roofing were brought to reality when Matt, one of the couple's friends, asked me if I wanted to help out. He said he saw how I worked, and thought maybe I would be good at it. I was complimented. Still, Susan thought I was crazy.

For a moment there, I agreed, as I began to climb up onto the roof. The guy at the bottom of the ladder was holding it steady, and managing to keep his coffee cup in his hand at the same time. The ladder wobbled as I climbed and I wanted to complain, but bit my lip to resist the temptation. I stopped midway, more than a little nervous.

"Come on up. The weather's great here," said Matt, the 30-year-old roofer. He smiled at me, his face partially hidden by his Red Wings baseball cap.

I swallowed my doubts and climbed up.

The roof was strange. It had lots of angles, lots of levels. It was a challenge for anyone. And I figured if I could work on this roof, I could work on any roof. There were many different pitches to get used to, and the many changing parts of the roof could get confusing, and plain scary, if you weren't careful. There were twin chimneys-one on each side. Matt was standing right where one of the triangles pointed up. I had to get used to walking up the incline. It seemed strange at first. But once I got used to the feeling, I was fine-well, almost.