Steve absolutely hated being late. He felt it was a sign of deep disrespect to not show up on time, and on time to him meant early. He relied on his schedule, but somehow, today of all days, there were 20 more cars in the ferry line than there had ever been there before. 20 more cars meant he would miss the next ferry, Missing the next ferry meant he would be late for his therapy appointment on the mainland. Steve was seething. Steve was upset. Steve was stuck.
He was going to have to call this therapist and let her know he would be delayed due to no fault of his own. Good god, where did these extra 20 cars come from? The entire situation was a complete historical anomaly. Steve had kept detailed spreadsheets of ferry traffic for the last 10 years to determine exactly when he needed to leave his home to get in the line at the right time to ensure that he would catch the boat and be where he needed to be when he needed to be there. And now, he was going to have to humiliate himself and call his therapist, who already thought he was a nut case. No use delaying this, so he picked up his cell phone and called.
“Hello, Steve!, What can I do for you?” Sarah said.
“Doctor Sarah, I am so sorry, but contrary to all of the detailed traffic tracking I have diligently done, There are an extra 20 cars in the ferry line this morning and I have no idea where they could have come from. I try to keep track of everything on the island as you know, but it appears, no, it is certain I am not going to make the boat I had planned on and that means that I will not be on time for our appointment. Can we reschedule? And of course, I will pay for this missed appointment.”
“Well Steve, as it so happens, I have a cancellation this morning, so why don’t you come on over on the next boat? I think that this provides a great opportunity for us to explore the issues you have with lateness. And, Steve, I am not a doctor, you can just call me Sarah.”
“Alright, Doctor Sarah. Thank you for your willingness to see me. I should be there at 10:26 I am embarrassed to say.”
“We’ll see you then, Steve. Don’t worry about it. I know you, of all people, are not a late person.” Sarah said.
Steve now had to sit here, in line, for another hour and think about that. Maybe he was actually “a late person.” Although he was very particular about timeliness, Steve had to admit, he was a bit of a late bloomer. He was late in understanding himself and that’s why he was seeing Doctor Sarah.
Doctor Sarah pointed out at his last session that it was “interesting” that he chose to live on an island if being on time was important to him, and here he was today, waiting in line for the boat. A line that he was under the illusion he could control? And, it’s true, I did choose to put myself right here, right now.
Steve had a good 30 minutes more to contemplate this conundrum, and in that 30 minutes he looked around at the line of cars, at the water, and at the distant mainland. He saw it all and smelled it all and then he noticed something very, very strange: He felt calm.
— DanielSouthGate
He was going to have to call this therapist and let her know he would be delayed due to no fault of his own. Good god, where did these extra 20 cars come from? The entire situation was a complete historical anomaly. Steve had kept detailed spreadsheets of ferry traffic for the last 10 years to determine exactly when he needed to leave his home to get in the line at the right time to ensure that he would catch the boat and be where he needed to be when he needed to be there. And now, he was going to have to humiliate himself and call his therapist, who already thought he was a nut case. No use delaying this, so he picked up his cell phone and called.
“Hello, Steve!, What can I do for you?” Sarah said.
“Doctor Sarah, I am so sorry, but contrary to all of the detailed traffic tracking I have diligently done, There are an extra 20 cars in the ferry line this morning and I have no idea where they could have come from. I try to keep track of everything on the island as you know, but it appears, no, it is certain I am not going to make the boat I had planned on and that means that I will not be on time for our appointment. Can we reschedule? And of course, I will pay for this missed appointment.”
“Well Steve, as it so happens, I have a cancellation this morning, so why don’t you come on over on the next boat? I think that this provides a great opportunity for us to explore the issues you have with lateness. And, Steve, I am not a doctor, you can just call me Sarah.”
“Alright, Doctor Sarah. Thank you for your willingness to see me. I should be there at 10:26 I am embarrassed to say.”
“We’ll see you then, Steve. Don’t worry about it. I know you, of all people, are not a late person.” Sarah said.
Steve now had to sit here, in line, for another hour and think about that. Maybe he was actually “a late person.” Although he was very particular about timeliness, Steve had to admit, he was a bit of a late bloomer. He was late in understanding himself and that’s why he was seeing Doctor Sarah.
Doctor Sarah pointed out at his last session that it was “interesting” that he chose to live on an island if being on time was important to him, and here he was today, waiting in line for the boat. A line that he was under the illusion he could control? And, it’s true, I did choose to put myself right here, right now.
Steve had a good 30 minutes more to contemplate this conundrum, and in that 30 minutes he looked around at the line of cars, at the water, and at the distant mainland. He saw it all and smelled it all and then he noticed something very, very strange: He felt calm.
— DanielSouthGate
Good for Steve. Absolutely food for thought about what we can control, what we can't control and how we sometimes self-sabbotage. Enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of my ex, who thought if we were 3 minutes late for the gym, life as we knew it would come to an end. Good characterization.
ReplyDeleteWell crafted. Moving frin the frantic to calm. Recognizing the put himself right here right now.
ReplyDeleteReally enjoyed
He's been absolved. An astute therapist can lead a horse to water, and he drank a little bit. This here's a funny line; "...his therapist, who already thought he was a nut case..." I'm feeling very supportive of Steve, and wishing I lived on an island, too, but for different reasons, perhaps. ---Macoff
ReplyDelete