Originally from March 2010
First there are the girls jogging. They wear their short shorts and tight tanks. Their hair in ponytails bounces and swishes with a graceful rhythm. One girl runs almost on her toes; she seems like a ballerina. Another runs with her feet more flat; they press firmly in the earth. She seems more intrepid in her gait. The dancer seems more whimsical. It makes their intentions come off differently, but really who can tell? Perhaps they both entertain the same reasons for running? Or perhaps they are both so disparate neither could begin to fathom that even though they are running side by side there are spaces and spaces and feet between them?
A couple walks across the intersection on the pedestrian path. She walks as some people do—throwing her feet in front of her. Her feet go first. Her leg comes next. The body catches up. It’s a careless step. It’s an unconscious one. I wonder if she realizes how uncertain her body seems to move, or how much her body desires to move. It goes so fast the mind must catch up.
Another couple walking on the sidewalk so in sync that their hips and butts sway in tempo to each other. Tick tock tick tock. One two One two. They saunter, letting their feet slip over the floor. She’s in skinny jeans. He has pockets on his gluts. They’re about the same height, They seem so comfortable. They move as if there is no time to push them forward or back.
A family walks ahead of them. There are two little girls. One in particular is out in front. She walks as if she owns the entire space. She straddles her little legs and widens her steps such that a person three times her size (me) doesn’t dare go around. She doesn’t know I’m there. She doesn’t realize her daddy is trying to make her realize I’m there. She’s too busy pounding the concrete with her tiny pink clogs. The ground trembles beneath her. She stomps. It screams.
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