• About verysincerely

verysincerely

~ letters from novelist to world. the rest at kellysimmonsbooks.com.

verysincerely

Tag Archives: talking to neighbors

Dear Woman Who Walks By My Car Each Day,

09 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by Kelly Simmons in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Kelly Simmons, strangers, talking to neighbors

I feel like I know you.  You feel like you know my car.

It’s been going on for years, you walking with — your husband? your brother?  your boyfriend?– and me driving with my kids. You are not old, but you walk with a bend, a limp, that is steadied by your companion. Your right arm is always looped through his left. He looks younger than you, because he is sturdier.

We each wave as the other passes; sometimes you smile. I probably don’t.  It’s early, and I’m late.

Once I saw you in a coffee shop and pressed my hand into yours:  “I see you walking every day!  I’m the woman in the blue car!”   I found out your first name and the name of your street.  I was surprised by how far away the street was.  I have forgotten your name.

For a week now, I’ve seen you walking alone.  Your partner, your cohort, your human walking stick, is not there.

And I worry.  I worry that though I thought you were the one who was sick, or crippled by polio, or recovering from something I could see and yet not see, that I was wrong.  That it was him, and you were his rock, not the other way around.

You walk by, still limping.  I wave.  And I don’t roll down the window and ask if everything is all right.  I can’t bring myself to.

But I force a smile, as if to say, I hope it is.  I hope.

Very sincerely,

Woman In the Blue Car

Recent Posts

  • Dear God,
  • Dear Man in White Suit,
  • Dear Refrigerator,
  • Dear Hot UPS Guy,
  • Dear Man With Gun,

Archives

  • March 2019
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • October 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • October 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • April 2016
  • December 2015
  • July 2015
  • February 2015
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • January 2014
  • August 2013
  • April 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012

Categories

  • Uncategorized
  • Work

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel