The look back Sculptuur door Miroslav Mlkvik

The look back

Once a wise man told me a story which caused me to think very deeply.

Father – a very successful and rich man who loved his wife and children very much, he cared about them a lot.

Suddenly he died, and after death, he came to an unknown place where a man stood. The man asked the father: …

“What was your life like?”

The father started talking: “I was very handsome, intelligent, successful and I became very rich very quickly. One day, I met my future wife who gave birth to our two children. Together we brought up our children as best as we could. I taught them to think as I used to think. I brought them up until adulthood…. And then I found myself here, in this place and realised that my life was over. When I am thinking back, I am happy that I had such a life.” After his answer, the next question came: “So, now tell me, what kind of person were you in your life?” Suddenly, the smile on the father´s face disappeared as he realised that everything he achieved in his life was at the expense of other people. Abuse, robbing people, humiliation—all so that him and his family could be happy and live in prosperity. In life, he was very happy that he could share this feeling with his family. The man asked the third and last question: “What do you think about your future life, about life after death? Where do you belong? To people who deserve a peaceful life after death or to people who will suffer misery, torments and remorse?”

The father was afraid and so sad, he did not need any other questions. He got it, he understood that it was he who taught his family everything, who taught his wife and his children to live as he did. He felt very unwell. He asked the man: “May I ask you about only one thing, nothing more, just one question! Would you be so kind, please and give me one more chance to warn my family to change their way of life!”

Based on this story, I created a woman whose job is her family, to bring up their children, to understand her husband´s feelings—everything is up to her. I accentuated her anguish on her face, on her old body and hands.