The Woman in the Straw Hat

A fleeting glimpse

As I pass the restaurant, from the corner of my eye I catch sight of a woman in a straw hat. When I turn my head and see her hat, glasses, and mask, she seems both alien and familiar. She looks old, well, older. It’s a hot day. I feel the heat press on me as I walk to meet a friend. On a cooler day, my walk might not seem like such a long one, but it is already in the eighties, humid, and the park is over a mile away.

As I walk my mind wanders, as minds do. I generally don’t listen to music, as I walk. I am one of the only people out walking without earbuds. Sometimes I sing to myself but mostly I think, worry, or daydream. I hate being hot and I’m distracted by the feeling of sweat rolling down my back under my backpack, and pooling around my nose and mouth under my obligatory, pandemic mask.

Like everyone, I dislike wearing a mask. It’s uncomfortable and hot. My face itches and for some reason, the mask makes it harder to hear. I feel the same way about my glasses, when someone speaks to me I always remove them. 

A fleeting thought

Each time my mind returns to the image of that woman I mentally fuss with it the way your tongue pushes around and against something caught between your teeth, working until you finally dislodge it. That’s what my brain is doing with the mental picture I have of her. Trying to place her, to remove her from where she’s stuck in my mind.

I’m almost at the park where I’m meeting my friend. When I check my watch I see I’ll make it on time. I smile to myself because I know she will be late, and that will give me a few minutes to sit down and cool off a little. I brought an iced tea with me, and I hope sipping it will lower my body temperature. When I get there I’m happy to see there are plenty of empty benches in the shade though I’m sad the fountain isn’t on. Another reminder of the pandemic. 

A not so fleeting trip home

Why is the trip home always so much longer than the trip there? Despite sitting in the shade and drinking iced tea, I never cool off enough to stop sweating, and my clothes are damp. I bid my friend good-bye and we each head off in a different direction. I need to make a stop on my way home and hope I won’t forget. I hold the envelope I need to drop at the UPS store, occasionally using it to fan myself which is futile.

I do everything I can to stay in the shade as I trudge home. The temperature is rising and I guiltily fold my mask down to allow some air to cool my face. A woman walking at least ten feet away from me glares at me as we pass each other on the wide sidewalk. As I get closer to home I allow myself to feel the fatigue from the heat. Every few blocks I stop to rest and try to catch a bit of the slight breeze.

A fleeting memory

Finally home, I enter the house grateful for the rush of cool air. I think again of the woman I saw at the outset of my trip, four hours ago. What struck me most is how old she looked. Even though her mask, glasses, and wide-brimmed straw hat hid most of her face, I could see her reflection in the window of the restaurant.

I close my front door against the wall of heat. I pull off my mask letting the cool air dry my wet face. I hook my glasses into the neck of my shirt, hang my wide-brimmed straw hat on the coat-tree, and head upstairs.