Parallels in the Same Universe

Posted on July 26, 2002 in Encounters

I dropped Lynn off at an automatic teller machine. As she walked toward it, she dug in her purse for the card. This young, athletic guy who wore a white baseball cap, harshly bleached T-shirt, and beige shorts saw that she was going to get there before he was. He burst into a run to get there first. “Why?” I thought. “What’s his rush? Or what right does he think he’s protecting?”

Lynn came back with the cash, handed me my allowance, and we went down to the local Food Fair to eat. A white SUV pulled up in front of the Edwards Cinemas. I saw a cross on the back. It irritated me. She waited and waited there, for some woman with a kid who was standing at the curb, trying to persuade the child to get moving. I got impatient, honked my horn, and went around her. As I pulled away, I looked into the rear view mirror. The mother and the toddler were finally crossing the street. I was angry with the woman in the SUV. There was no reason that I could see for her dallying like that while the kid was making up her mind. But as I sat down to my dinner I directed the questions at my rush. “Why? What was the rush? What right did you think you were protecting here?”