Illusions

Have you ever wondered what other people’s lives were like? Maybe even envied their lifestyle? When I was younger I would sit at the very front of the bus and watch as people boarded. Often I would wonder about their life, especially when they looked either very rich or very poor. Occasionally a person would board and all the time be chatting away so those people also caught my attention. When you ride the bus regularly you get to know certain people even though they will always be strangers to you. When I say you will get to know them, I mean you will recognize them and make up a story about them in your head based on their talk, clothing and the story you’ve created for them.

In high school I was always one of the quiet ones but I didn’t keep my head down. I observed my classmates and did the same thing with them as I would later do with the bus riders. I assumed things about them based on their talk and their actions. Years later I discovered a few things about making assumptions. You can be wrong, so wrong. I watched some of the girls walking the halls at school and thought how very confident and popular they appeared. Now the truth comes out that they were as shy as me. I learned that there were a lot of lonely people at school even though they appeared to be so popular. Now that still surprises me. And there were some people who were even newer to the school than myself and yet they had tons of friends. That also amazed me. Some people are like that, they blend so easily into a situation.

So why am I talking about illusions? Maybe because I watched a new show last night called “Ringer” starring Sarah Michelle Geller. She is playing twins and Bridget who appears to be the loose cannon recovering addict is discovering that her socialite sister Siobhan is not the person she appeared. First episode was very good. Needless to say I figured out what was happening as soon as Bridget woke up alone on the boat, it had Double Indemnity all over it.

I’ve made a lot of stories up in my head about my colleagues, based on observation. I wonder how wrong I really am about them. Probably just as wrong as when I was in school? Or have I learned a little bit more over the years? One thing is for sure, I almost always cut them some slack and find “excuses” for them when they act a certain way. Some days I am a lot like Melanie Hamilton “maybe he’s walking along the road and maybe some good woman is sharing her supper . . . “

You know what I mean?