"I was a failure. I hardly ever noticed whether the sun was shining, because I had no time.
"My parents couldn't support me, and I didn't have much education. I was alone in the city, searching for a future.
"I applied for many jobs, but no one hired me. Perhaps nobody liked someone who wasn't good with words, disliked communicating, and hadn't shown enough ability.
"For three whole days, I ate only two loaves of bread. Hunger kept me awake at night. Fortunately, I'd paid a month's rent in advance, so I could keep living in that dark basement instead of facing the exceptionally cold winter wind outside.
"At last, I found a job keeping watch at a hospital at night-keeping watch over the morgue.
"The hospital at night was even colder than I'd imagined. The wall lamps in the corridors weren't lit, and everything was dim. I could only rely on the little light spilling out of the rooms to see where I was stepping.
"It smelled awful there. From time to time, the dead arrived stuffed in body bags, and we helped carry them into the morgue.
"It wasn't a very good job, but at least it let me afford bread. I could also use my free time at night to study. After all, hardly anyone wanted to come to the morgue unless there was a body to deliver or take away for cremation. Of course, I didn't yet have enough money to buy books, and for now, I saw no hope of saving any.
"I had to thank my former colleague. If he hadn't suddenly quit, I might not even have landed a job like this.
"I dreamed of being able to rotate onto the day shift. Always sleeping when the sun came up and getting up