Daily story, November 3, 2024

At the museum I always look at the same painting. I was going to look at a different one each time I visited; I thought that would make me more appreciative. But I never made it past the first. There is always something more to look at. It would seem a little bit arrogant to move on, like I had finished it. Now, though, they have taken it down for restoration. I am free to move on to the next. But I look at the hook, and the patch of wall, and the little plaque telling me about a painting that is not there but that I can close my eyes and see. I look at the room in which it stood, and in which I stand. I find that there is still more of the painting to see.