Imagine

Before the schools opened, we went to an Outlet Mall on Tax Free Day. My daughter in law wanted new shoes, clothes for the children. We started a bit late. When we reached there it was full of people milling around. The sun was sweltering hot, and I was already regretting on coming along. Earlier I had done my shopping while visiting Newark, New York, Long Island and New Jersey.

I tagged my son and daughter in law while they bought the needful. I love shoes and sandals and never tire of getting new ones. It is a standing joke my children need to spout and say, “Mama by now you must be having more shoes than Imelda Marcos?”
” Not yet,” my reply.
Or they sarcastically remark, ” Have you broken the record yet?”

I was lucky that day and got two lovely sandals at throw away prices. 😊. The ones I bought were, at Macy’s, for eighty five dollars or so, plus they were tax exempted. Later on I kept sitting in a shoes shop while my grandsons were getting their shoes. My son and d in law went off to make their own purchases.

Bored and waiting I glanced at other people in the store. Two of them got my attention, because they sat next to me. One was a mother with her teenage son. The mother kept on making her son try different ones, never satisfied. I imagined myself in her place. She looked harried and there were worry lines on her face. I wondered where her husband was? Whether she was by herself bringing up her son? How lonely must be life for her and how tiring?

The second person sitting next to me was a girl, probably in her early twenties. She wore a mini, off shoulders dress. It was a sort of skin fitting one. Idly I wondered how she got into it. She was wearing very high heels and I kept thinking the heels must be killing her. She kept getting up and tried different ones. I imagined myself in her place and thanked my lucky stars I was not her. Wearing the type of dress she wore, which showed all her curves, if I was wearing one like that I would have sunk right through the floor. There was no boyfriend or parents with her. She was all by herself. 😞

I tried to imagine what life must be for her. A lonely life. There were no girls with her either. She must have come on her own.

Finally my family completed their shopping and had we had lunch at a place famed for it’s Middle East cooking.

Along the way. Photo by Sheen.
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Imagine