For three and a half minutes he sat staring out through the window. Small birds dived towards the birdtable. Pecked at the suet balls and shot away into the tree for protection. Then he turned to me with a sad expression.

Maria was our sister.

I had had no idea.

Who told you I asked even though I knew already.

62

ELEVEN

The birds of spring sang and the smalångerstream rustled. Where the road went under the efourbridge it was flooded. A firm promise of spring.

Even the hessiancovered elderlyservices office was bathed in light. Pale wintry faces were eating packed lunches and comparing notes.

I had brought a couple of sandwiches and washed them down with water.

Seems you’ve taken over from maria both her job and her man said jeanette or whatever her name was.

Five days earlier I wouldn’t have known who maria was. By now everyone kept returning to this insubstantial spectre who apparently was also our sister.

My excited workmates were talking across each other but I had already stopped listening. This was one of my talents. At quarter past eleven I got up, a quarter of an hour before the break ended.

Went over to the whiteboard and rubbed out my name. I don’t like betting I said but this morning her nappy was on her.

Then I picked up my list and drove along to the first client of the afternoon. A demented woman in her eighties who had turned the electric hob up to six and burned her wrist. Now she was in tears sitting on the edge of the bed.

I cooled her wrist with ice and called the nurse just in case. Then we sat down together on mrsjohansson’s pullout bed and 63sang an easterhymn. Christ the lord is risen today hallelujah! all creation join to say hallelujah! raise your joys and triumphs high hallelujah! sing you heavens, and earth reply hallelujah!

It is so strange she said. That he was crucified and died and was buried and got out of his grave on the seventh day and was resurrected in the clearing by the sawmill.

The day continued as it had begun with little variation other than firm or loose bowel movements. The last visit of the day was once more to katarinakarlssonhansson.

She was awake and looked brighter than last time.

Hi she said and smiled. Great to see someone normal for a change. I’m so fucking fed up with the usual run of homecare service crones she said. How do you stand working there. I mean you’re some kind of artist aren’t you. I wouldn’t take a job in the homecare service if it was the last place on earth. I’d rather take a cleaning job for the maintenance company.

Her rant was interrupted by a fit of coughing. I patted her back. Her spine seemed to give under the palm of my hand.