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The next morning Sue sat beside Johnsy and told her that Behrman die

that morning. He had been ill for the last two days. The caretaker of the

building had found him in his bed. His clothes and shoes were wet and

he was shivering. He had gone out at night during the storm.

Then they found a ladder and a lantern still lighted lying near his bed.

There were also some brushes and green and

yellow paints on the floor near the ladder.

“Johnsy dear,” said Sue,“look out of the window.

Look at that ivy leaf. Haven’t you wondered why

it doesn’t flutter when the wind blows? That’s

Behrman’s masterpiece. He painted it the night

the last leaf fell.”

A ladder and a lantern were lying near his bed.

Paint brushes, green and yellow coloured paint

were also lying nearby. Sue asked Johnsy to look at the leaf. It did not

flutter when the wind blew. It was the masterpiece that Behrman aspired

to paint. When the last leaf fell at night, he painted this one.

2-Summary of the Lesson:

Sue and Johnsy, two young artists, shared a small flat. Johnsy fell
seriously ill in November. She had pneumonia. Sue, her friend, got
worried to see her lying restless on the bed, gazing out of the window.
Even though the doctor visited every day, there was no improvement in
her condition. One day the doctor asked Sue if anything was bothering
Johnsy because she was not responding to medicines. It seemed as if
she had given up hope to get well. Sue tried her best to make her feel
happy and start taking interest in her surroundings. But Johnsy was sad.
She kept her gaze on the window only and started counting backwards.
Sue heard her do this and anxiously looked out of the window. She saw
an old ivy creeper climbing the wall opposite their window. The creeper
was shedding its leaves in the strong wind outside. Johnsy was counting
the leaves left on the creeper.