The Girl With the Red Umbrella

Today was a good day to find True Love, and so I set out to gaze at every person I encountered, hoping to find a special connection. For hours, wandering the streets of Northampton, (I was there to buy a birthday cake for Jack) I saw nothing of interest- the same sorts of people I always see, middle-aged parents, young ne'er-do-wells, the elderly, silly college girls. I spent hours wondering, what would I do when I saw my true love- how would I recognize him or her? Would music play? Would s/he glow? Would we make eye contact and be transported to some field of flowers?
But none of this happened. My errands completed, I returned to the bus stop, where I sat and mused on just what to do should I see my true love. Then I got distracted by my Hebrew-English dictionary, which of course always lives in my purse. As I flipped through it, Katie suddenly said "What if it's her?" I looked up. Standing at the mailbox, scant yards from me, She slipped a letter into the box. Well, she fumbled a bit with it, making a face when she finally got the mailbox to work. She was dressed in a long black coat, and, as I watched her, something in me paused. I wasn't sure what. She stepped back from the mailbox. She turned. Swinging by her side, a bright red umbrella. Bright red like the bag I carry. We matched almost, black coats, red accessories. She walked down the street. I followed her with my eyes to the antique store, a store whose hours are "by chance," according to the sign on the door. She went in. I wondered if I had enough time to jump up, run after her, ask her name, her age, anything. She came out of the antique store. She headed to the corner, pressed the button for the pedestrian crossing light. The light changed. She disappeared, red umbrella swinging at her side. I stared down the street until my bus came, my failure sinking in. I boarded the bus. I watched the fog embrace the mountains as I rode home. Once there, I stared out the window until Jack decided it was time to eat cake and watch Rammstein music videos. But the girl with the red umbrella haunted me. Around 11:30, Katie and I headed for Debi's birthday party at Mod 65, where I failed to find any sort of true love, although Megen and I had fun discussing uses for the lounge on the hall we plan to share next year, and I gave Noah my Heartstring and tried to trap Scottie under some fake mistletoe. When we'd had enough of Jello shots and awkward dancing, we I left that mod for the kosher mod, and I eventually walked back to my dorm in the rain, alone, thinking about a red umbrella and a girl who makes cute faces, and how we could have held hands and how she'd giggle when I said something funny. How we'd be extra-delicate about avoiding puddles, and then jump into a really big one just before we reached my door, just for the satisfaction of peeling sopping wet pants off before climbing into a warm bed.