
The point that caught me in the end is the same one that resonates through Matryona’s story. The locksmith makes a thoughtful remark to Samsa in the last pages of the story. She muses that “Everything is blowing up around us, but there are still those who care about a broken lock, and others who are dutiful enough to try to fix it…But maybe that’s the way it should be. Maybe working on the little things as dutifully and honestly as we can is the only way to stay sane when the world is falling apart.” The story concludes with Samsa deciding to do just that. Returned to human form and motivated now by love, he does not trouble himself over what he cannot control, but sets out instead to accomplish what the present moment requires of him.
By Marie Murray, Director of Operations for WYA North America