Travel now not tomorrow

  Bus stops are good places to watch people. I often stand, leaning against a wall, observing, not judging, but looking for clues to a story. One day in a wealthy part of London, the road wide and peaceful, I watched an older woman come out of a nearby grand house. When I write that she was wearing a PVC cape, fish net stockings and heels, the outfit might give the wrong impression for a woman of her elder years. However, she had a perfectly pitched bun at the back of her head, subtle makeup and great poise. As she stopped to wait for a bus, a young man said to her, “You look very nice today, ma’am.” She nodded to acknowledge his compliment and thanked him. I felt awe. She had grace, style – her own style – and calm composure. I wanted what she had and wondered where she was going in PVC and fish nets. To visit a lover is too obvious. My preferred story is that she was visiting a husband or former lover who was in a nursing home. The style was too precise. I believe she was d...