LIKE TWO SHIPS IN THE NIGHT

As I sat in the waiting room between procedures at the cardiologist’s office, sitting diagonally across from me was a gentleman, reading a magazine. Deep into the article he was reading, he took on a comfortable position to read over a long haul. I couldn’t help but notice how oblivious he really was to everything around him, his nose literally buried in the center of the magazine. Whatever article it was that held his interest must have had some effect on his future or revealed something he didn’t know. I went back to my Kindle Fire and was reading a great book myself.

A rather happy looking middle-aged woman entered the large waiting room, that held about 60 seats, casually strolling to the receptionist desk and suddenly made a detour toward the gentleman and deliberately swung her pocketbook into his magazine, he not looking up or even flinching. Keeping her eye on the gentleman she sidestepped to the receptionist’s desk and signed in. She smiled at me as she noticed I saw the whole event unfolding.

Signing in she sits opposite the gentleman and continues to stare at him, as he remained buried in his magazine. On the walls of the room are three TVs to entertain the waiting patients, Slowly the lady’s attention drifted toward the TV as a new DVD was inserted and a movie started. Slowly she became mesmerized by the story going on and was almost in a trance, her mouth agape and slumped down in her chair.

Suddenly the gentleman came alive, finishing his article. Slowly he raises his head and notices the lady. With a word, he puts the magazine down in his lap and starts to wave to her. She is oblivious to his motion, her eyes deep into the mounted TV screen, the world closed off from her attention. Back into the magazine the gentleman goes.

Why was it that neither the lady nor the gentleman not think to say: “Hello!”? They must have known each other by name, but neither one spoke. The strangest thing I have witnessed since the last time I looked in the mirror.