Walk with me, won’t you? I’m not going to go far. Or fast. Just a short one. You can tell by the shoes I’m wearing. They’re old, see? Kind of scuffed up, especially on the tops of the toe box? My actual walking-walking shoes never look like that. Not until I start just wearing them around. Which if you think about it, doesn’t say much about how often I actually walk, especially with the kind of weather we’ve been having the past couple of weeks.

            I was at a meeting the other day, and Doc _____ was there. I’ve told you about him. Gruff kind of guy, in a way. But interesting. Anyway, he used to be one of the top surgeons in the area before he retired, which wasn’t all that long ago. And he was sitting with his legs crossed, and I could see where he’d repaired the bottom of his shoe. Couple of black patches, two on the ball and one on the outside heel. Some material I couldn’t figure out. Rubber of some kind, I’d guess. Anyway, he was a top surgeon, so even in retirement I can’t imagine him hurting for money, you know? And he patches the bottoms of his shoes. It’s probably not because he’s cheap, though he might be. Who knows? Maybe he’s really thrifty, you know? That’s how rich people get richer, isn’t it? Maybe we should be a bit more like that, huh? But I think it’s probably more that he just liked the shoes, you know? Maybe his favorites, and they don’t make them anymore, or they changed the way they make them in some way. That’s happened to me more times than I want to remember. Drives me nuts. You know that. Get used to a style or a model, and they jack it all up with some new release, or something.

*         *         *

      I’m glad you decided to come with me, after all. You haven’t been out much, and it’s such a lovely day, you know? The sun brightens your face. I wish you could see the way it makes your hair shiny. I can take a picture, but I doubt the camera in the phone would show it. Besides, some things are better in our memories, you know? Rather than trying to capture them.

*         *         *

      This is the route I usually take. I like the way there’s a bit of a downhill as we’re approaching the water, the big boulders at the end of the walkway to keep bicyclists from diving headfirst into the bay, or something. Either way, it’s kind of cool the way the land wraps back around on the other side, the houses and buildings and stuff, like it’s their world over there and our world over here, you know?

      This is so great! I’m so glad you decided to come with me. Kind of makes you realize just how fantastic life is sometimes, you know?