5. split second

do you ever stop for a minute
and wonder what happened
to those people you met
and left in a flash?
just someone you happened
to say hi to on the street?
maybe a waiter
at a restaurant
that you never saw again,
no matter how many times
you went back?

you ever wonder
what happened
to that one person
you said hello to,
but never said goodbye to?
the person that left your life
just as soon as they entered?
the chance encounter
that faded away
into the memory dump?
you ever wonder
if that was the person
you would take to the moon
with you?

i hope they’re all happy.
you know,
the people i never said goodbye to?

i hope the woman
that i helped at the store
keeps going to church
and staying positive
in this wild-ass world.
i hope my friends at the store
keep helping her out,
she was so kind and loving,
almost like a second mom.

i hope the gentlemen
who said “bless you” when i sneezed
gets many blessings sent his way,
i hope the kid
who asked me to play with him
when i was on the clock
found another friend to play with.
i hope the lady
with the baby
that wanted my brother
to take her picture
lives a life of love
with the child.
i hope the guy
who scared me
by yelling out the window
of his car
when i walked home at night
got to his house safely.
and i hope the cute girl
that i saw all the time
but never actually knew
found a lover
to keep her warm at night.

in such a short life,
we can learn so much
from split-second interactions.
this is the beauty of life:
the sense of wonder
that comes from
the tiniest of things.

it’s magnificent.