Саравчны хуучин хана

It is late October, and Grandad's old boat shed leans over the wet slipway. A long crack runs down the stone wall, and one grey beam has slipped. After looking at the crack, Grandad shakes his head. “Don't push that wall — it could fall over,” he says.

Sara and Ben carry Grandad's tools down to the shed. Ben leans a ladder on the wall, and two nails fall out of the wood. “Careful — the whole side can fall apart,” says Sara. Ben climbs the ladder without holding the rail. “Your glasses will fall off up there,” Sara calls.

Nick comes down with a long rope over his shoulder. “We can pull the beam straight by tying this to the van,” he says. Grandad taps the wood. “Did you check the beam before starting?” Nick can't lift the beam without breaking the wall. The rope goes tight, and the beam does not move.

Ben and Sara carry the heavy boxes out of the shed, and soon they fall behind. After running up and down the slipway for an hour, Ben sits down on a step. “Stand back, or the wall will fall down,” Grandad calls. Nick drives the van forward instead of waiting, and the knot comes loose. The rope whips across the slipway, and the beam drops two inches.

“Plans like this always fall through,” Nick says. They fall back to the top of the slipway and sit in a wet row. Without saying a word, Grandad goes into the shed and comes out with a saw.

He cuts the grey beam free, and the whole side comes down. Behind it stands a second wall, straight and dry, built long ago. “That old side was just a screen for the wind,” Grandad says. Sara laughs. “So after working all day, we pulled down a screen?”