Even the best

Through the window of his office, across a small courtyard, a crane was lifting building materials up to where workmen were busy building. As I watched, the counter-weighted turret turned on its long stem, over a hundred feet tall, but also, judging against the verticals of his window blinds, the whole support was swaying and torquing. If such a crane were to fall... 'Do you ever think about that?' I asked. 'I try not to.'

The young man with a European name was helping me clarify what had gone wrong and what could be done with regard to a stream of money I had been looking forward to, but now think I've lost. Attentive to my story, solicitous to my concerns, he helped me better understand the complexities of my situation...and the challenges I faced. I sweat buckets but left energized.

Entering the state office building, I passed through airport type security, which always gets my hackles up. In the reception area, I was greeted by someone who wished me luck. Yet when someone came to get me, I found myself confronting an old stereotype: the self-absorbed, dismissive government official. He didn't make me feel like the fool I have often felt myself  (quite appropriately) in this whole business.  Who's to blame? There are many candidates, and I am one. 'I could have..., I should have..., oh, that I had...'  Regret is a long-toothed animal gnawing in our gut. Still, let's see what can be done.

This young man--quiet, friendly, competent--would never make the mistakes I have. He wouldn't ever be found sitting on my side of the desk explaining things as I had. Of course, I'm mistaken. We all have lapses and limitations we learn to live with. Even the best can make mistakes, a thought that surely occurs to him as sometimes he turns his head and looks out his window.