THOSE FIRST FEW SIPS WERE so gratifying. The woman stood squarely on the street corner in her faded viridian sundress and tried in vain to keep her bobbed hair from sticking to the fresh lipstick on her lips while managing careful mouthfuls from the folded opening of her coffee cup. She’d decided to rise early this grey morning despite the overcast sky because the weather lady said there’d be sun if one was willing to exercise patience up until maybe one o’clock that afternoon. The woman liked the sun and what’s more, she liked the smell and taste of strong coffee. She liked both so much that she thought she might be able to spend the rest of her life waiting for the sun to graciously appear if her coffee would last that long. She knew though that she was required elsewhere and she hadn’t applied her lipstick for nothing so she stepped free from the curb. A horn honked callously at her and she jumped back. Her skirt had plumped like an open umbrella from the gusting wind hurled by the car as it swooped past. This is why she never went outside without Rosa, she remarked to herself as she glared with frayed nerves at the auto as it disappeared into traffic. How silly to have forgotten her early childhood rules of looking both ways before crossing the street.
She carefully crossed and then walked six blocks at a steady but leisurely pace. She was in no rush. She watched the other early risers as they passed by her. Some, like her, had coffees in their hands, others looked tired and weary and some looked late and rushed towards their destination. The smooth yet cool air brushed against her face but the afternoon sun would soon help raise the temperature a few degrees warmer. She finished her coffee and deposited it in the receptacle outside her destination. She entered the office building through the large revolving door, which swished around as she entered the welcome lobby. The woman approached the desk and was greeted by the receptionist.
“May I help you?”
“I have an appointment with Doctor Landau.”
“Oh, you’re early. Have a seat and I’ll let the Doctor know you’ve arrived.”
“Thank you.”
The woman sat down and looked at the magazines strewn on the coffee table in the waiting room. She didn’t care for any of the subject matter; still she selected a copy that had something to do with gardening and thumbed through the pages thoughtlessly. She set the magazine down and decided it didn’t interest her at all.
The voice of the receptionist summoned her and the woman returned obediently to the reception desk.
“The Doctor will see you now,” the receptionist pointed to the right hallway.
The woman remembered her last visit down the left hallway where she was made to wear one of those terrible robes and asked a barrage of questions.
Doctor Landau greeted her pleasantly in the hallway. He smiled at her but did not say hello and she did the same. They entered a room together and the Doctor sat on one side of a white-topped table and the woman sat on the other side.
“Well now, thank you for coming in for this quick visit. How are you feeling today?” The Doctor opened his folder and pushed the top button on his pen, holding it poised above the paper.
“Fine, thank you Doctor,” the woman replied calmly with firm eye contact.
“This is good news. Have you given any thought with regards to my suggestion from our last visit?” He hesitated in wait of her response before jotting anything down on paper.
“Yes, I should like to try gardening. It seems rather nice.” She smiled sincerely.
“Gardening?”
“Yes,” came her affirmation.
“Well now, this is an excellent idea.” His pen scrawled across the paper and he looked up at the woman again. “Have you found anything you like besides coffee?”
“Yes, the weather lady said it would be sunny today and I think I’ll spend the day walking and enjoying the sun.”
“Well now, I am very pleased to hear this. I think that should about wrap today’s session. Oh, how is Rosa?”
“Who?”
The doctor’s mouth formed a brief smile as he wrote a final note in the folder, tore off a page from his prescription pad and handed it to her. They both got up from their chairs at the same time and the Doctor led the woman back to the reception counter, smiled again, and waved as the woman walked away. The Doctor watched as the revolving doors continued to spin once she had exited though them. From his office, he could see people going about their days beneath the warm rays of sunlight.