June 11, 2025

Homework for our first June meeting: Go to a public place and observe a person, or group of people, on the other side of the room (or from where you can’t hear them) and write their story. This is an exercise in reading people’s body language and non-verbal communication.

Here’s the short story that I shared:

Unknown Man

Tall and lanky, he grinned as he strode past me, raising a two-finger mini salute. I found his smile dazzling and infectious. I couldn’t help but answer in kind.

He was back again the next weekend, smiling that wide-mouth grin. Definitely a contagious kind of one. Charm emanated from him. I wondered if that grin had gotten him out of childhood trouble, or did it annoy his teachers?

This man appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties. He walked with a military stride even as he pushed a cart filled with animal feed, smiling and saluting again as he left the store.

To my way of thinking, his grin and bearing seemed at odds. A scene of him saluting a drill sergeant flashed into my mind. He was trying to control his enormous grin, but failing.

The sergeant yelled, “Wipe that silly grin off your face. You look like a village idiot. Drop and give me twenty.” He glanced at the other squad members. “Don’t stand there smirking. Drop and give me twenty.”

Back in the barracks, he apologized. One comrade scoffed. “You forking moron. Always getting us in trouble. Can’t you do something to dim that megawatt grin of yours?”

His grin widened. “Sorry guys. Can’t help doing what comes naturally.”

The beefiest private approached and punched him in the gut. Laughing, he said, “Sorry. Had to do what comes naturally.”

Kidnapped

Jane stared at the woman’s open palm, then looked up at her smiling face. She did not understand and turned to look back at the entrance. She should ask Mommy, who was sleeping, and Jane knew better than to wake her.

The stranger had unwrapped the square package and broke off a piece of something brown. “Open wide, sweetie. Like this.” The chunk disappeared behind her lips. “Yummy.”

Little Jane was ready when the lady tapped her chin. Opening wide, she almost bit a finger as she pulled the sweet into her mouth. Chocolate deliciousness exploded on her tongue as she devoured the rest of the Hershey bar.

“Oh, it’s all gone. But I have more in my car.” The woman reached out her hand. “Please come with me.”

Jane hesitated and looked toward the entrance, then shyly grasped the outstretched fingers. Within a few moments, they were next to a black cargo van. The rear door opened. Hairy, muscular arms lifted her inside. Jane opened her mouth to scream, but the woman put something like sour patch gummies on her tongue. She tried to keep her eyes open as she chewed, but the world grew dark.

She awoke in a soft bed, wearing a white flannel gown. Still groggy, she tried to see her surroundings. Though the room was dark, three other beds occupied the space. Jane tried to get up, but something weighed her down. Her thumb crept into her mouth. Suckling it, she fell asleep.