At the Airport

At the Airport

In the ladies room
The cleaning woman
Scours the sinks.
I greet her and she
Returns my hello,
Which doesn’t always happen.
Often they seem to prefer
To remain anonymous,
Invisible.
After I’ve washed and dried
My hands, without looking up
She says, “Safe travels.”
An unexpected blessing.
I want to give her something back,
But all I say, with a light-filled voice is
“Thank you so much”.
That is all I can get out.
Yet I want to look her in the eyes,
Complete the connection,
Tell her…what?
Have a lovely day?
Thank you for seeing me,
I see you, too.
Thank you for acknowledging
That we both belong
To the same human family,
For not closing yourself off.
Thank you for taking the chance
That you might be ignored,
For keeping your heart open,
For reminding me
It’s worth the risk.

Author: Julie Cook

Photo: OWN FILTERS on Unsplash