Today I walked up Lincoln Boulevard, which is under construction. I needed to cross at 84th Street, but couldn’t reach the button that makes the “walk” sign flash, because there was a trench in front of it. The ditchdigger looked up. He wore a reflective vest, a floppy camouflage hat, and a beatific grin. He reminded me of the gravedigger in Hamlet. He gestured, I nodded, and he rotated his shovel, lifted it high out of the ditch, and pressed the button with the tip of the handle. And from down in the depths, my way was made clear.
Photo by nickjeffery