Brick Mason's Daughter

My dad is a brick mason and so were my 2 grandfathers so it’s easy to say I would know a thing or two about laying brick. It has surely come in handy a few times in my life and each time I’ve had to use that knowledge; I have become smarter, quicker, more experienced. With each job, the joints look more clean, the foundation more sturdy, are larger than the last, more effective, rising higher and higher. I have found that some jobs were unnecessary and the walls would need to be torn down. But as I get more under my belt, those walls are harder to tear down. The last wall to come down started slowly, very tedious work, back-breaking, brow sweating….many man hours went into what eventually resulted in a massive wall to come crashing down… covering everything around it in a cloud of dust. It was a most victorious day and well worth the hard labor. The land was cleared of debris and life began to flourish where the wall once stood. But I’ve been out of work for a while, no need for any walls to be built….until now. I thought my mason days would be over and I could hang up my trowel….retire from this laborious job that has took such a toll on me over the years. But now a wall is needed and it is time to dust of the tools handed down to me from a father to his daughter….trowel, level, jointer, and brush. This project is my biggest yet and will require much attention to details to ensure that it will withstand just about any force of nature. That it will stand rigid, unbreakable, firm. I dread the hours that this will require, the aches and pains my body will endure for this enormous wall….a wall that no one will be able to rappel over, with numerous defensives, so high and well-built that it will intimidate anyone who dares to think twice about seeing what’s on the other side….a wall long enough to encase a small city so that those who rest inside will sleep peaceful at night with no worries of invasion. As I gather my tools together, I realize I had forgotten how heavy those mortar mix bags were. Funny…you usually never forget that or the effort that goes into mixing mortar. But I had forgotten. I start going over the blueprints, going over the knowledge that has been passed down to me and what I have acquired by experience….building my confidence up for that task that lays before me. It’s time..yes I believe I’m ready to start my footer. As my shovel strikes the dirt…I wonder if this is the beginning or the end of my career as a brick mason’s daughter.