3 Women

On November 12th, my experience was much quieter than my first two visits. I sat with my daughter Meghan for a couple of hours, then got up to sit across the courtyard. Although I didn't really speak to anyone, any further than to say hi, a curious collection of women started to come within my space. Was this my own imagined delusion? Could be, but for the next couple of hours, 3 women would come and sit, lay or stand near me, then move away, then come back, move away, and come back again.

One of these young women was named Mary. I only know this because I heard someone call her that when he bummed a cigarette off her. She was so tall! She had impressive facial features and towered over almost everyone on the campus - male or female. I said, "Hi," and she said, "Hi," and that was all we said to each other. She was thinking in another world than me, occasionally laughing, but there was a savvy to her demeanor that I will probably never understand.

None of these 3 young women were in a position this day to have a conversation with me. Perhaps, for them, they've learned to converse in a completely different way. I'd like to think that their motion toward me, then away, then back again . . . and again was their way of communicating that just for awhile, they had found a safe and curious place to pass the time - just like me.