Make Your Selection
The aisles of the store were wide and bright and it didn’t matter how it was outside, in here it was cool and clean and always the same. She pushed her cart down the wide, bright aisles and looked intently at this and that, wondering if anyone was noticing, judging her for the things she perused. Perhaps someone was judging in a quiet, unobtrusive way. It was hard to say.
“Who does she think she is?”
Maybe she should select something less expensive, so as not to seem pretentious. Or maybe something more expensive, to show them she didn’t care what they thought. Whoever they were.
She wandered over to look at other things, the kinds of things no one really needed, and she selected several of them. It wouldn’t do to go to the checkout with a meagerly stocked cart. Not at all. As she rolled the cart down the aisle she marveled at how large it was. It seemed as if when she was younger, carts were not so large. Perhaps it was a marketing ploy to make her purchases seem smaller, to make herself seem smaller. She wondered if anyone noticed how small she looked in comparison to the giant cart, and whether it was slightly ridiculous.
“There’s lots of room for you on the bandwagon.”
Quietly she smiled to herself, wise to their tricks.
She wondered if anyone noticed her selectivity as she shopped, her style and taste. Did they notice how the things she was buying seemed to flow together into her big red cart? How they painted a picture of her tidy, structured life? Looking at her purchases, anyone could see that everything here was perfectly managed and under control. Her manner of living was obviously one to be emulated. Worthy of their covert attention and grudging respect. She was sure they noticed that, at least.
She wheeled the giant cart to the rows of registers and paid for her things. The cashier seemed unimpressed with the quality of her purchases, ringing them up in a quite haphazard fashion. The cashier seemed sleepy and bored, truthfully. The cashier seemed not to notice anything important.
She went to her car and packed her bags neatly away in the back seat. The orderly way in which she arranged them ensured everything would arrive home safely. Of course it was then that someone finally noticed and appreciated her extremely good style and taste, her attention to detail. He had a knife and some silver tape, and he stood in the shadows where it was quiet and dark.
“It’s wonderful to meet you.”
He wielded the knife with precision. Quite gracefully, in fact. If anyone had noticed they surely would have admired his skill. And it didn’t matter how it was inside, out here it was hot and red and always the same.
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[...] luck would have it, Thursdays are my posting day, so there’s a new piece of mine “Make Your Selection” up now. I’d love for you to have a look and let me know what you think of the blog [...]