Better to Reflect and Accept

Every morning is different when I pass my neighbor with her dog. Yesterday, she greeted me twice. She asked me how I was doing. We chatted about the weather. I liked how we connected, like singing a brief duet. Today, I greeted her, and she was in an entirely different space. She said nothing in return to my “Good morning,” She scowled at me and turned down a side street I was about to cross.

It felt like we had fallen back to the ground floor in our steps toward détente.

I’m unsure why I am so focused on connecting with this woman. I imagine she has lived a difficult life, but I don’t know. I conjure a story of her being mistreated and traumatized over the years.

No proof of that either. Or that she is fragile.

She is a middle-aged black woman. Why should she trust me?