“it’s cold!”
Was he trying to dissuade me from riding? The tallest man in our building smoked a cigarette just outside the entrance. I see him nearly every day. You might say that morning smoke is his daily ritual.
“It was cold today!”
That, from a woman about my age and half my size. Before this afternoon, I’d seen her only in the laundry room. But she greeted me with her weather report as she held the door for me on our way back into the building.
It certainly was colder today than it’s been in months. The wind made it seem even colder. Was that the reason why that woman, and the man, noticed? Or was it their age? Since I’ve moved into this senior citizens’ building, I’ve heard people remark about cold weather, and weather in general, than I’ve ever heard before.
While it was colder than it’s been in a while, it didn’t seem exceptional to me. Perhaps that’s a reason why, living in a senior building, I still believe I am in midlife.
Or is it an act of defiance—like the bright yellows and reds of leaves about to turn brown and fall—or the sun peeking through a gray shroud of clouds? Or my ride today?
