No reason to complain

He brought the hand-held mirror towards me.  Even before he could raise it, I told him "it's ok.  I'm sure it is fine."

"Are you sure?" he asked with a smile.

"Am positive.  Haven't had any reason to complain thus far" I replied.

He put the mirror down on the counter.  I felt him tapping my shoulder, in a warm and friendly manner.  "I wish my wife always said she had no reason to complain" he said with a big laugh.

I joined in the laughter.

That is how my latest haircut session ended.  After that, I got out of the seat, paid up, and left.

I love such unscripted human interactions for the flavor they add to the everyday life.

Like the other day when I was on the bike path.  I overtook a couple--perhaps only a few years older than me--when I heard the man tell the woman, intentionally loudly to make sure I heard him, "if I walked at his pace, I surely will lose a lot of weight."

I turned around and gave them a big smile--a smile that was bigger than what I sport now while typing this.  They chuckled in return.

Or like a few days ago when I was at the checkout counter at my regular grocery store.  Wendy smiled big time and said that she didn't have any jokes for me.  "Hey Kathy, do you have any jokes for Sriram?" she asked.

Kathy, who was at the adjacent counter walked over to me. She tilted her head.  She thought.  "I have a Halloween joke for you."

"Tell me" I said.

"You know from all the jokes that the chicken crossed the road" she paused for the effect.  "But the skeleton did not cross the road.  Why did the skeleton not cross the road?"

As is the custom in such groaner contexts, I asked her, "ok, why did the skeleton not cross the road?"

"Because he had no guts."

We all laughed.

Is it because I am older that I am able to participate in such interactions?  In all these contexts, the other parties were all my age or older.  Were we all able to enjoy those moments only because we are not young?  If we had had these intersections in life when we were in our twenties, it would have been different?

Perhaps to experience life from its silly to the profoundly happy and grieving moments requires one to have lived a few years, witnessed the ups and the downs, and been far and away from where we were born and raised.

It's a wonderful life, indeed!