More Than a Hello
Near the end of my Saturday run, I passed by another fellow human. He was working his way down the sidewalk; I was cruising - homeward bound.
He said, “Hello - How is your day?” Mummified – I blurted out “OK.”
Didn’t he see I was running – I couldn’t just stop and tell him the infinite details of my marvelous life!
In a flutter of seconds – I passed him.
Then I felt ashamed.
But first let me tell you about him.
He looked about my age perhaps a smidge older – dressed in a suit and tie. He was walking very awkwardly on crutches. As I did a quick scan, (runners are very good at this) I noticed he had special shoes on. Made of black polished leather. The left shoe had a 3 inch sole lift on it.
In a flutter of seconds – I passed him.
Then I felt ashamed.
I quietly asked myself - how was his day going… Was it his first walk on a new leg? Had he been born with a handicap? Or was he walking slowly because he was in extreme pain – recovering from surgery or perhaps a car crash.
The only thing I know for sure is that I should have stopped and talked to this stranger.
If you have a chance - read this related post at Life 2.0
[Blogging's Hidden Jewel]
“Almost everybody avoided his eye and darted off. One or two people looked at him warily. Nobody said 'hello '…
3 comments:
I just read that other post, I will have to do some more checking out of that blog. I like it!
You know, I've tried to make a point of saying hello to people when I run now, whether they're walking, or riding a bike, or raking their leaves outside their house. If I really like their house, or I can see that they've built an addition, I give them a compliment. It's pretty cool to see their expression change.
Maybe if you run the same route again around the same time, you might see that gentleman again? You've mentioned that you are on the shy side in the past, just consider this as a small baby step - if you do see him again, try to be the first person to ask how he is doing. You may be pleasantly surprised at his answer. :-)
I do wave at everyone. I think we isolate ourselves when we wear earpods. I wear my on most runs...
But a smile can go a long way : )
Thanks T for your wisdom.
Yeah, I do too, which explains why my husband says "did you yell at people today on your run?!" It's just hard for me to run without mine and to not have someone with me at the same time.
Good luck, I hope you see that guy again.
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