A man walks down a dimly lit street; the bright red lights above the hospital’s exit are now just a faint glow behind him. As he staggers along the city blocks back to his quiet row home, he ponders the tragic news he has just received regarding his mother’s failing health. A couple blocks from the refuge of his home, he runs into some of the neighborhood locals. Some he knows most he doesn’t, but greets them all the same. “How’s it goin’?” he says, in a voice that is less then enthusiastic. “Good” they reply, “How’s it goin’ with you?” The man responds “Good, thanks for asking”, again not showing much interest in the conversation he just finished, he trudges toward home. After passing the locals, the man is amused at the simple truth that he is not doing “good” and that he does not really care if those people are. He ponders the stupidity of the conversation he just h!
ad and laughs for the first time all day.
in the face, because of the lack of emotion or a quest for an answer to the question.
Do they even care how I am? Do they even know who I am? Should I trouble them with the predicament that I am in? Would it be proper to stop and explain to these people how my mother is dying and how much pain I am in. Unsure if the man was rude to his neighbors with his dismissive attitude towards their conversation he reflected back on his life. During the course of this reflection he realized the silliness of these types of conversations. He realized that he had had these conversations everyday of his adult life and never realized it. Just words to fill in the presence of silence and a simple acknowledgement of a person, the words uttered had no meaning or feeling they just took the place of the simple hello. Although the words were originally meant to be more personal then a “hello” or a wave, they really were more dismissive. The question of “how’s it goin’?” or “what’s up?” actually seems like more of a slap
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