The idea of a ‘missed connection’ is in itself endearing and sweet. By subscribing to it, you automatically assign meaning to time, place, and the people that you bump into during your day who would otherwise go seemingly unnoticed. There is something creative and clever in imaging scenarios that could have happened if not for any other reason then to let your imagination float away for a little bit.
To the man that smiled at me on the train yesterday as I pretended to look at my book. I noticed you. Your smile wasn’t flirtatious; I don’t think you meant for it to be leading. Perhaps you saw in me the daughter that you sent off to a big city to study. Or I reminded you of someone that you used to know. You got off the train at the next exit, and I didn’t look up to see if you had kept staring. I thought this to be too inviting. If I had made eye contact long enough for you to introduce yourself, perhaps you would have told me what you saw in my face. We could have gotten off at 23rd street together, sat down and talked about how lonely you are feeling without her near you.
To the two young girls standing in front of me in line at In-N-Out Burger a couple of months ago. Both brunettes in your sweatpants, UGG shoes, and crop top shirts even though it was below 60 outside. I listened to your conversation in aw, not because it was interesting, but because I was in shock. You were talking about taking pictures of your boobs to send to your boy classmates. How I wish I could have blurted something/anything out of my mouth to change the trajectory of your choices. Tell you about the importance of respecting yourself, and how the attention you were getting is not the right one to crave. I could have changed your choices if I could have found the words, instead, I went up behind you and ordered my Animal Style Fries and drove home.
To the flight attendant that watched me cry through a romantic comedy on the red-eye flight from San Francisco to NYC. I could tell you were interested in me the moment we locked eyes when I entered the plane. You were extra observant when you handed me my tomato juice, and I watched you as you made a couple of extra trips up and down the aisle to see what I was up to. I was shocked when you slipped me your phone number before we started our descent. I was too shy to actually give you a call when I landed in NYC. I wish I had. We could have gone on a date to eat Puerto Rican food and gone dancing after. I could just tell you had fantastic moves on the dance floor.
