HUMAN INTERCHANGE
TALKING STONES
A knock on my kitchen window drew me away from chopping veggies. A UPS delivery person was smiling, holding up a package and motioning toward my front entrance. I dried my hands and scurried to the door.
As he handed me a shipment of postcards, he motioned to the deck beside the steps up to my second-floor apartment and said, “Those stones encourage me to pause and reset. Is that what you intended?”
I smiled and said, “You got it!”
“I don’t use the lock box,” he continued, “because I like to know who I’m delivering packages to.
Usually, when I bring a package, if you’re not here, I’ll place it over there, away from visibility of the door.”
“Great! I should have another package coming in a few days.”
We nodded and he descended the stairs.
As I watched him head for his truck, I was caught up in a cloud of gratitude for the human connection two strangers could have just because I put a few lovely stones where they could greet visitors.
I noticed that the woman waiting at the bus stop was wrapping a long, knitted sweater- very stylish - tightly around her thin body.
She nodded when I said, “It’s a bit chilly, isn’t it?”
I pointed to the fleece jacket under my old Indonesian-made all-weather coat, sayng “I almost came out without my coat, but then I went back and got it. I’m glad I did.”
“Yeah, I wish I had.” She began telling me that even though it’s chilly here in Oregon it’s still way better than living in Chicago, a city where I had lived off and on for over ten years. I nodded and grinned.
The bus door opened. Indicating my cane, she motioned for me to enter first. I took a seat near the door. She followed and asked if she could sit in the adjacent seat. I nodded assent.
As she sat down, she pointed to my cane. “I really like what you’ve done to your cane. It says who you are.”
Eight minutes later I got off with my cane, backpack, and shopping bag. The driver and I thanked each other.
