The Nice Thing About Strangers
Creative Non-Fiction Short Stories. :) Travel, Oldsters, Love, and Compassion.
Crossing Guard
I’m waiting to cross the street, watching for a few hustling taxis to pass, when I feel a presence on my right. I instinctively move a bit to my left. I am polite, and I know that when I am on one side of a street, people have a tendency to want to stand in front of me. Though I generally overtake them within about three or four paces, there’s something about my paused self that must appear (falsely) like a slow walker.
As a final taxi zooms by and the coast is clear, I notice that the figure on my right is a stray dog. The dog has been waiting with me for a clearing, and when I begin to move, he crosses at my side. I feel delighted that I have led him to a safe retreat. It seems an honor that one of the city’s stray dogs would trust my judgment.
Then I notice a few more dogs crossing. It seems that rather than leading, I am a part of a herd materializing from behind several parked cars. At the next crossing, one blonde dog cuts ahead of me. Another mutt jogs, turning his head to see if I am coming along. I’m laughing aloud at my quick demotion from shepherdess to sheep. I hear more laughter and notice a group of older women observing my encounter and enjoying it immensely. I smile in their direction, happy to be accepted, as my pack runs on without me.
Running the town.
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The Nice Thing About Strangers 
I like the picture of this, the one in my head just saying