The Vegas Voice 9-20

The Man Across the
Street
By: Dianne Hahn / Back in the Days
When I was growing up, there was one
person I’ll never forget - the man across
the street. Mr. Lazar wasn’t your typical neighbor.
He wasn’t married with kids. He wasn’t social, and he didn’t have a
job. In the summer he sat on his front porch every day drinking coffee
and looking up at the sky.
I rode my bike by
his house, and I’d
wave and call hello!
He never waved
back; he always
acted like he didn’t
see me.
The seasons came
and went. My steps
became faster while
Mr. Lazar’s grew
slower, but one thing
never changed.
There was always
a high-powered
flashlight in his
hand. At night he’d
turn it on and off
and point it at the
sky. What was he doing?
I got used to the flashing light. I’d watch it as I did my homework at
the desk in my bedroom on the second floor of our house.
One night the flashlight didn’t shine. An ambulance arrived. “It’s old
Mr. Lazar,” the neighbors whispered.
I never saw Mr. Lazar again, but a nun came to the house occasionally.
She began to clean and fill huge trash cans with unwanted stuff. I
waved when I walked the dog. She always smiled and waved back.
One day in April a cleaning crew came to the house, and then a
realtor hung up a For Sale sign. The nun sat on the porch drinking tea
while they worked. I stopped to say hello.
“Did you know Mr. Lazar?” I asked. She smiled. “Ian was my older
brother. We were both raised in this house. Now it’s time to sell.”
“What happened to him? He never smiled or said hi to me.”
“He was wounded in World War I. Ian was shell shocked from
firefights. Are you the little girl across the street?”
I nodded. “What was he doing with the flashlight every night?”
“Oh, the flashlight.” She took another sip of tea and her smile
broadened. “He was watching for enemy planes. One day he told me it
was to protect the little girl across the street.”
People have
always come here
looking for a sign.
Gangsters, pranksters, vixens,
visionaries, rascals, ranchers.
They all came, along with thousands
of ordinary people, with either a
fortune to find or nothing to lose.
They all made history. Our history.
Come take a walk through it.
BOOK A TOUR
NeonMuseum.org
A former schoolteacher, Dianne also writes for children. Presently
she has six kid’s books available on Amazon.com. You can also
see her on SCA-TV.
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