My new little corner

I have a new little corner of the world.

It's a pretty amazing place really. Lots of people, but nobody in particular.

I race out of the office to take my lunch break as if my life depended on it. The actual timing changes every day, but it's still as important as ever. I have a new little corner where I can see everybody. Parents with children, children with parents, those who use wheels, those who are ambulatory. All shapes and sizes on the their way here, and there, and nowhere in particular.

There is one woman who comes every day. Even though she's there over the lunch hour, she never eats anything, just buys her coffee and sits in the same chair. Every day.

You can tell she loves it there. She's in my corner of the world. She sees all those people. She just watches them. Listens to the snippets of conversations that pass her by. It's amazing all those people with all those plans, all heading somewhere in particular.....while she sits.

She doesn't talk to anyone but the coffee barrista. She always smiles, pays her money and then finds her chair by the window. One day there was someone in her usual chair. It seemed to throw her off, but after standing for a moment, she rebounded and found another spot, a different vantage point for a different kind of day.

Sometimes I wonder about it. I wonder about her and I wonder about all those people who are walking to and fro.

I'm guessing that what makes this tiny corner of the world so special is that it's a cross-section. It's a place where common and uncommon meet. A place where lives are changed, made better, muddled through, and where some are gainfully employed. I'm guessing why she likes her spot so much is because she has a chance to watch all of that movement, all of that universal energy and engagement come together in one place. She can watch other people's lives, even just for ten seconds and imagine their world. Their comings and goings. Their passions and their bitterness. All picked up from snippets of ten second conversations. Their burdens walk by her, and their celebrations as strollers hurry through. Busses drop off and pick up. Husbands help wives from their walkers into their cars. Tender smiles, kind touches abound.

She sees it all.

And she wonders.

And then, just as quickly, she snaps out of it, and wanders quickly back to work, ...patients and co-workers alike, waiting for her to return......

.......from my little corner of the world.