Interesting

Preception

Assumption

Ignorance


A woman in the doctor’s waiting room natters on about the weather, oblivious to the fact that no one’s really listening. Maybe she’s a chatterbox. Or maybe she’s terminally ill.

A man stands in line at the bank, frowning to himself. Maybe he’s overdrawn. Or maybe when he gets home he’ll tell his wife he no longer loves her.

A child on the swing in the playground wears long sleeves, though it’s the height of summer. Maybe her mother is overprotective. Or maybe her mother beats her black-and-blue.

The husband in bed turns to face you. He may be thinking only of you. Or he may be thinking only of your closest friend.

The man on the treadmill next to yours at the gym runs as fast as he can, turning his iPod’s volume up as high as it will go. Maybe he can’t lose those last five pounds. Or maybe he can’t get rid of the image of that woman he met at the bar, and can’t drown out her screams.

And you: Maybe you know yourself. Or maybe you don’t.