"Who Are You?"

I was working as a Business Development Manager, looking after the south-eastern suburbs. I loved the variety and being out and about suited me.

It paid well and was pretty relaxed. Tough conversations were rare.

One day, I was working in Nunnawading, visiting a store I went to once a fortnight. I was in an aisle on my phone, placing an order, when an older lady suddenly bumped into me. I stepped back.

“Oh! I’m so sorry,” she said.

I smiled. “All good,” I replied, and kept going with my order.

Later, I wandered outside to finish placing it. It was scorching high 30s, blistering sun.

Out of nowhere, the same lady appeared again.

“Excuse me,” she said. “Could you help me get a pot down from the top shelf?”

“Sure,” I said, smiling. I walked over, reached up, and handed her the pot.

As I turned to leave, I suddenly felt a strong grip on my arm. I turned back, it was her.

She stood there, looking at me… then looking around… her eyes darting left and right.

“Is everything okay?” I asked.

And then she just… unloaded.

All her pain, worry, grief, and confusion came spilling out.

“Wait one second,” I said gently, “Let’s move into the shade, it’s way too hot.”

We stepped aside, and she let it all out. She told me how much she hated being old. How she missed feeling young. How nothing satisfied her anymore. She had all this money, but it meant nothing. She said she’d sent her gardener home that morning because she was frustrated and couldn’t decide what to plant. She told me she’d just returned from a cruise but left early because she was hating every second of it.

She looked lost. Angry. Sad.

And then she told me about her husband that he had died. That since then, life had been shit. That she didn’t want to die, not like this.

I looked at her and said softly, “You don’t have to worry about that because there’s no such thing as death. You can’t die.”

She stood there in silence, stunned.

“Don’t worry,” I said again. “Just enjoy your life. Accept this moment, totally. If you want to speak to your husband, just talk to him, like you’re talking to me now. You’ll get an answer. No worries.”

She started crying.

I looked around, There was no one else nearby, but I didn’t want anyone to come and interrupt. I knew I had to go. She just kept staring at me.

“It’s like some great light pointed you out of the sky!” she said. “Who are you? Who are you?”

I smiled gently. “I’m nobody special,” I said. “Excuse me, I have to go.”

And I left before anyone else could see or hear what had just unfolded.