O. Henry (1907) — a sick young woman, an old painter, and one leaf that will not fall
Original version available: read this lesson at B2/C1 level →
This is a famous short story, told here in simple English. Read each part, then stop and talk about the questions. The end is a big surprise — read slowly and do not jump ahead.
Sue and Johnsy were two young painters. They were friends, and they shared a small room at the top of an old house in the city.
That winter, Johnsy became very ill. She was so weak that she had to stay in bed. From her bed she could see out of the window. On the brick wall outside grew an old ivy plant. It was winter now, and the leaves were falling, one by one.
Johnsy looked at the wall and counted the leaves. She had a sad idea. "When the last leaf falls, I will die," she said.
Sue was worried. "That is silly! Leaves and people are not the same," she said. But Johnsy did not listen. She just watched the leaves fall.
Downstairs lived an old painter. His name was Behrman. For forty years he had wanted to paint one great picture, but he never started it. "One day," he always said, "I will paint my great picture."
Sue went down and told him about Johnsy and the leaves. Behrman was angry and sad. He did not understand why a young person wanted to die.
That night, a big storm came. The wind was strong and cold. The rain was falling hard. Sue and Johnsy could hear the wind all night.
In the morning, Johnsy asked Sue to open the curtain. She wanted to look at the wall. They were both afraid: after such a storm, surely all the leaves were gone.
But one leaf was still there! It was old and dark green, but it held on to the wall.
The next day, the leaf was still there. The wind blew, but the leaf did not fall.
Johnsy looked at it for a long time. "The last leaf is still here," she said. "Maybe I was wrong. I want to live."
Day by day, Johnsy felt stronger. The doctor came and smiled. "She will be fine now," he said.
But there was bad news too. Old Behrman was now very ill. He had caught a cold, and it was serious.
Then Sue sat by Johnsy's bed and told her the truth. On the night of the storm, old Behrman went outside in the wind and rain. With a ladder, a lamp, and his paints, he painted a leaf on the wall — a leaf that would never fall.
"That painted leaf," Sue said quietly, "was Behrman's great picture."
Ten useful words. Tap each card to see what it means and an example sentence.
1. Johnsy was very ______ and had to stay in bed. 2. In the night there was a big ______ with wind and rain. 3. Behrman painted a ______ on the ______.
This story uses two past tenses. We use them to tell stories about the past.
Past simple = a finished action. Johnsy became ill. Behrman painted a leaf. The doctor smiled.
Past continuous (was/were + verb-ing) = an action happening at that moment, often in the background. The leaves were falling. The wind was blowing.
1. Johnsy very ill in the winter. (become)
2. Sue downstairs to talk to Behrman. (go)
3. A big storm in the night. (come)
4. Behrman a leaf on the wall. (paint)
5. Johnsy better day by day. (get)
1. became 2. went 3. came 4. painted 5. got
1. The leaves from the wall. (fall)
2. The cold wind all night. (blow)
3. Johnsy the leaves from her bed. (watch)
1. were falling 2. was blowing 3. was watching
We often use them in one sentence. A long background action (past continuous) is interrupted by a short action (past simple). We use while before the long action and when before the short one.
1. While the wind , Behrman the leaf. (blow / paint)
2. Johnsy the wall when the last leaf there. (watch / stay)
1. was blowing … painted
2. was watching … stayed
A good short story is more than just words. The writer uses tricks to make you feel something. Here are three simple ones from this story.
We think the last leaf is real for the whole story. Then, at the end, we learn the truth: it was a painting. This surprise is called a twist. It makes us think about the whole story again.
The last leaf is not just a leaf. It shows Johnsy's wish to live. While the leaf stays, she stays. When an object means something bigger like this, we call it a symbol.
Behrman does not tell anyone. He goes out in the cold storm and paints the leaf to save Johnsy. He says nothing. The writer lets us learn the truth at the very end, and this makes the kindness feel even stronger.
Do all three. Use the timer and try to keep talking. The sentence starters can help you begin.
Now tell the story again in your own words. Use short, simple sentences. Try to use four or five words from the Words tab, and tell the events in order.
These steps will help you: a sick girl thinks she will die when the last leaf falls · one leaf does not fall and she gets better · the old painter downstairs is now very ill · he painted the last leaf on the wall in the storm · that painting was his masterpiece, and he died.
Behrman did a kind thing for Johnsy. Talk about a time when someone was kind to you, or you were kind to someone. Say what happened.
Johnsy felt better when she saw the leaf. Can hope help an ill person to get better? Say what you think.