While the galette was baking I sat down to knit some more of the bulletin board. The women who peppered my day floated into my thoughts. The one who sat to the left of me at a church I tried this morning who smiled shyly and patted an empty seat for me, squeaking out "comfortable". She looked worn and tired and seemed pleased to have somebody sitting by her side, even a stranger. To the right a woman who would not sit still. She seemed to be having a leg cramp and made painful noises as she wiggled in her seat and looked at me. I thought she just needed some attention. Not having anything scheduled, I meandered through my day - grocery shopping and doing errands slowly....which caused me to pay attention more to those around me. At Walgreen's, the Indian woman who developed my pictures beamed over one saying it looked just like a painting and that she loved the sun and the shadows. In my normal rush I would have said thank you and parted....today I took a pause and asked her if she painted. She said she was putting together an art show, she had 15 paintings done so far and that they were religious paintings of people...they were hard to find and therefore valuable. She had much hope in a future where she could paint all day. When I left she seemed more relaxed, her smile was radiant. I think it mattered that somebody saw "her" - not just a clerk behind a counter. At Stop & Shop the woman bagging my groceries looked to be past retirement age. She asked me if I was ready for the holiday....and with a little encouragement told me that she was having everyone to her house...38 people. Her eldest is now 18, so she can no longer pass people off to the kids table. She was excited to be able to cook for her family again...but was perplexed about where to seat them all. I think that sometimes we are all just waiting to be heard. We want someone to witness our lives...to know that we exist. We want to matter.
p.s. the galette....very interesting
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