The passing cars

I remember when I was very young, driving someplace with my parents and my sister, and my mom saying, as each car went by, that in that car was a story. She said, in each car , there was a story of successes, failures, health, illness, first moments and last moments. In each car there was excitement or disappointment, hopes , dreams or some unfolding nightmare. For some reason, I always remembered that. Maybe that is why I hear and see stories when I meet someone new or even glance at someone passing by. I sense the unfolding story , dream or hope, , fulfilled or not. I just get a feeling.

Today was no different. Two passing images stayed with me. One was a man in a wheelchair, no legs, stopped at the curb at a traffic light corner. Alone. Going somewhere . How did it get like that. What happened. How does the rest of the story play out. Sadness engulfed him. There was an earlier time when the promise was different. The future was different , some earlier time, for the young boy who became that man.

The other was a young couple walking down Ocean Drive. I was driving past as they walked by.  They looked like they were on vacation. She was wearing a wrap of sorts around her shoulders. You could just tell that she bought it for just this trip. I don’t know why the thought hit me but there was a sweetness and innocence to it all.

I saw both images within 5 minutes of each other. Each “car” tells a story. As you meet people today , as you pass others on your way, sense their story.  We each are in our cars and in each car a story is playing out.  Feel your part in the unfolding story today.