Stranger

I came across this sign one afternoon when I was walking home with a friend. “Cool, free stuff”, we thought, as we walked over to see what cool trinkets we could find. Everything there was covered in a fair amount of dust, and seemed to be from ages ago. A bit disappointed, I started to walk away, but then I saw that the “Free Items All” sign had some writing on the back as well. This large wooden sign had once been a congratulatory sign, celebrating the previous home-owner’s 100th birthday. When I realized that, I felt a strange connection and sadness for this woman whom I had never met before, realizing that all of these items, from the crochet mouse to the photography magazine, had all been hers before she passed away. What started as a fun detour had led to a connection to a stranger that I had never met before.