The Broom of the System (64 page)

For I stand firm in my belief ... that Jesus shall not want!

“Do you want to hear what I think?” says Mindy Metalman Lang.

“I am one enormous ear,” says Rick Vigorous.

“I think you’re just tired, and tense, and understandably upset, and that’s why you’re not being fair, and making up these lies.”

“And who may I ask has the temerity to allege that I am making up lies,” says Rick Vigorous softly, looking up and away. His face is running with light.

What is going on is that tonight it is raining, between the moon and the window. It is raining awfully hard. Lines of rainwater run down the window, and the moon shines through the rain and the window and makes the rear wall of the dark bedroom run with reflections. Back against the wall leans Rick Vigorous as he sits up in bed, in his underpants. He looks like he’s running with moonlit rain. So does the bed. The whole room, running with clear white. The colored chalk sketch of Rick and Veronica Vigorous in their Scarsdale yard, the one that’s framed in dark wood and hanging above the bed, seems almost to glow. The television is on, over by the window, but its cold flicker is lost in the moon’s million white trickles.

“Rick,” Mindy says from the window.

“Don’t look out,” says Rick.

Mindy turns and waggles her finger. It runs down all the walls. “Rick.”

“Do you know why I don’t want you to look out?”

“Sweetie pumpkin,” says Mindy, “I’m trying ever so hard to still be pleasant about this whole thing, but it’s wrong of you not to tell. It’s not right, and you know it.”

“My God the window’s drooling,” Rick says. He points. His wrist hangs with light. “Doesn’t it look as though the window is drooling? Salivating at the prospect of absolutely everything there is to impart ?”

Mindy starts to turn back.

“But don’t look out,” Rick says.

“So start imparting,” says Mindy.

“Haven’t I already?”

“I want to know where my husband is,” Mindy says softly, looking down into the television. “I don’t care about your ‘context,’ and I’m more than a little upset and worried that you’re sitting there with that thing on your wrist seriously trying to tell me that Lenore Beadsman died in your phone tunnel.”

“You saw the lobby floor.”

“But Andy and Lenore went to the airport
tonight,
I happen to know. I talked to Dr. Tissaw
tonight.
”

“Context is essential,” Rick says.

“But I don’t care about context Rick,” says Mindy. “If you want to know the truth I don’t really care that much about Lenore. And I don’t care about some book, which I have no idea what you’re talking about, which first you say you wrote, then you say is the Bible, then you say is the dictionary, then you say is the Sears Catalogue, so what am I supposed to think? But anyway I don’t care about that.” Mindy crosses her arms over her bra. The moon is white jelly through the top of her hair. “Honestly,” she says.

“But it’s essential to the whole story,” says Rick. He is playing with his stomach, over the band of his underpants.

“Or about alphabets of old people, or children singing like birds, or fat men chewing on buildings, or phone crews fishing in black air, or people eating each other’s membranes—you can just stop whispering about all of it, because I don’t care about it right now.”

“What do you want,” says Rick.

Mindy taps a foot on the floor. “I either want to watch the bird’s show, here, which by the way don’t think I’ve forgotten you practically promised to call, last night ...”

“I forbid you to look at it directly.”

“... Or then I want to know where my husband and ditzy little Lenore are, so I can begin to take steps. What branch are they supposed to be at?”

“Lenore Beadsman and W.D.L. are finished,” Rick says. He looks around him, his shadow on the flowing wall. “They’re over.”

“Rick sweetie I’m so trying to be nice but that’s just a lie,” says Mindy. She comes to stand at the bed. “Can’t you tell what’s a lie? I don’t know what happened to you today, and how could I since you won’t tell me, but you’re in bad shape if you sincerely think people are done who are obviously not done, I’ve got to tell you. I’ve got to think you’re either lying for fun, or you’re maybe just not a well man. Daddy always said you weren’t a hundred percent.”

Rick looks up at Mindy.

“Honestly,” Mindy says. She looks back at the television. “I can just watch the news, you know.” Rick keeps looking at her. “I can just watch the news at eleven, if you want to be a little dung beetle about it,” she says. “Why lie if I can just find out the truth in a couple hours?”

“I think you’re confused,” says Rick.

REVEREND SYKES: And so friends if we are to be in Jesus and so never want, never
ever
want, what must we do here tonight? UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Use me. Satisfy me like never before. REVEREND SYKES: Tonight we must attempt to see together that to be
satisfied
in a spiritual sense is to be
used.

THE PARTNERSHIP SINGERS: Oh yes that’s right, to be satisfied is to be used ...

REVEREND SYKES: For we’ve seen together that to be satisfied is to be in Jesus, and to be in Jesus is to be a partner. And what is a partner?

UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT : Who cares how many partners I’ve had, Clinty?

REVEREND SYKES: Yes friends it makes no difference how many partners work together, what is a partner?

THE PARTNERSHIP SINGERS: Partner, oh what is a partner ... ? REVEREND SYKES: Is not an individual who is a partner with God simply an individual who
recognizes,
and finds within his own soul the strength to perform, the
function
God has
assigned
to him? We must ask how can we be
useful
to God.

THE PARTNERSHIP SINGERS: Oh, how might I personally be used ... ? 1 UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Sunflower seed, please.

REVEREND SYKES: But friends can’t we see that it’s all just a glorious living circle of faith, because now to be useful to God is merely to be a
partner with God!

THE PARTNERSHIP SINGERS: Oh, it’s all a glorious circle ... REVEREND SYKES: And to be satisfied is to be used, to be used is to be a partner, to be a partner is to be a worker, to be a worker is to be
one of many,
locked and nourished,
together,
in the
soil
of faith. UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Sounds pretty healthy!

REVEREND SYKES: Friends, tonight I want us to think together of this humble program as the soil of faith. I want us to think of ourselves ...
joined
here tonight,
together,
in the electronic soil
of faith today.
I want us to feel used and satisfied by the Lord together tonight.

UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Miss Beaksman, hear the mandate! REVEREND SYKES: So friends, laugh if you will, but tonight I have a game for us to play together. A profoundly and vitally important game for us to play together tonight. The stakes’ll be as high as the stars in heaven, friends, I’ll warn you now.

REVEREND SYKES: Friends, I want us all to get up and put our hand on our television screen. Those of you who might be unable to get up with us tonight, why you have a friend or loved one bring your television close to you. Friends I want you to come to me and place your hand on my hand, that I hold out to you tonight. Let us all place our hands
together
in the electronic soil.

UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Sow to reap a pretty boy!

REVEREND SYKES: So there is the game, friends, and now here are the stakes tonight.

THE PARTNERSHIP SINGERS: The
stakes
tonight ...
(They return to the pleasing harmony.)

REVEREND SYKES:
Every
player, every one of you
who feels
something, who feels what I can feel standing right here before you tonight, who can feel the individual imprisoned inside these secular shells of impotent pain and desire
flow
out of you,
flow
out into the soil, who feels the sort of union with all and with- the Lord our Savior Jesus Christ that I feel
right now,
when you touch my hand, each one of you who
feels
what I know in my heart we
shall all
feel together tonight ... each player who feels it will go straight to his telephone and call us here at the Partnership Pledge Center at 1- 800-PARTNER, to become a partner with us and with God, tonight. So to feel what I feel tonight, friends, is to become a partner. No two ways about it. This game is a challenge, friends. Are you up to it? I stand here
challenging
you tonight.

UGOLINO THE SIGNIFICANT: Holy holy!

REVEREND SYKES: Use me, friends. Let us play the game together. I promise that no player will feel alone. You see my hand? Here it is. I hold it out for you to touch. Touch it. Lay your hands in the soil and touch me. Here I am for you. Friends I sense we are all ready tonight.

“Well no I’m not angry, you silly,” says Mindy, kneeling in front of the television. Cold light comes out from between her fingers, on the screen.

“I promise to tell,” Rick says, looking down at himself.

“I know you’ll tell,” Mindy says softly into the television. White shimmers melt down her back. Drops of light stop and start. She reaches back with her free hand, tosses her hair out of the way, unhooks herself.

“What are you doing?”

Mindy rises and turns and slides out of everything, moving her hips.

“I said I’d tell,” says Rick.

“I know you will,” says Mindy. “I know you’re upset, but I feel like I just know you will.” She comes to the bed. Her body moves a million ways in the wet white light. Behind her Rick can see a flickering hand, dead and cold. It covers everything.

“I really will,” he whispers.

Mindy touches his leg. Light comes out of his leg, between her fingers.

“Don’t you worry about anything,” she says. “I know you.”

“You can trust me,” R. V. says, watching her hand. “I’m a man of my

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