A story that illustrates

How to talk about a difficult issue

When I give presentations on different ways to talk each other, I say that the values that we hold dear cause wars but we don’t see them. They are invisible to us. One of my objectives is for people to become more aware of their own and others’ values.

Reba Gabel heard about my work and was inspired to write a flash fiction story about two women who were able to be aware of what is important to them, talk about those differences and find the commonalities. I thought my readers might enjoy it.

The View 

By Reba Gabel

      People passing on the sidewalk could see and hear the two women talking above them. Though in separate apartments, Renee and Louise could carry on a conversation by standing at their open windows. The downtown city streets were lined with adjoining buildings with windows extremely close together. The developers had increased residences by having one thick wall separate structures instead of making space between buildings. No grass. No garden plots. Residents had to go to the park to see green. The three-story buildings with the tiny apartments housed many families. Renee and Louise frequently opened their windows and caught up on their daily lives during breaks from their cleaning. This morning both were looking out and chatting when they heard shouting up the street.

     Renee, gripping the bottom of the window tightly bent her elbows and leaned far out the window to look.

     “What?” she asked and then followed with a “Look.”

     Louise, being much shorter, had to straighten her arms and pin the backs of her hands against the building to lean out far enough to see. “What the hell?”

     A teenager was running fast. A cop in pursuit was trying to keep up.

     “Louise. What do you think the kid did?” Renee asked.

     “What do you mean? Maybe the cop is just looking for someone to blame.”

     Both Louise and Renee saw the young man unlock a door in the next block and run inside. The cop was close behind talking into the radio attached to his vest.

     Both women were still watching the cop, but they were not leaning out as far. At the same second they turned to look at each other. Just a moment and then they turned back to the cop. Two police cars were screeching to a stop.

     Louise turned her head towards Renee. “Why are you so sure the kid did something?”

     “Why run if he’s got nothing to hide?” Renee snapped back.

     “This business of your question to my question, could go on forever,” Louise thought as she listed three reasons in her head why a teenager would run. They both watched the blinking lights for a while.

     Louise finally asked a different question. “Tell me really. Why are you always on the police’s side?” She quickly held her finger up. “No, don’t ask me why I’m never on the police’s side. Tell me really.”

     Renee looked up the street then rested her elbows on the window frame clasping her hands.

     “Is she praying?” Louise wondered.

Renee spoke softly. “You know they deserve some respect. They put their lives on the line everyday and if they weren’t around, we probably couldn’t walk the streets.”

     “We couldn’t walk the streets?” Louise prodded even though she was surprised.

     “Someone’s got to control things, keep things in order. The community is what’s important,” Renee said.

     Louise propped her own elbows on her window. She studied the street below. A few years ago, they made it four lanes by taking the parking spots away. Traffic sped by so close to the sidewalk now. So close to the people, to the children.

     “Well, if the mayor took more care of all the citizens here, then most people would be more interested in those around them, including the police force. Everyone would be safer, and that cop might stop thinking everyone had a gun.”

     By this time, the cop and one of his back up guys had gotten inside. A neighbor must have buzzed them in. The third policeman stood behind his car and had turned the flashers off.

     “I just need him to be safe,” Renee said. “He deserves it.”

     Both women were now wondering if they should get on with the housework.

     “I think they must have got him,” Renee said.

     “Maybe,” was Louise’s quiet reply.

     As they began to back out of the windows and get to work, the screech of an approaching siren produced a shudder in both. They saw the ambulance streak by as they stood up, like synchronous swimmers. Renee stood looking out. Louise stood looking out. Then instinctively they turned toward the thick wall that separated their apartments. Both knew they faced each other. They stood close in distance but far apart when thinking about how to keep their families safe. Each realized it would be the afternoon news before they knew who was carried off.

     “Time to get the furniture dusted,” Louise said as she turned.

     “Yes, I’ve got to vacuum today,” Renee said with her voice fading as she moved toward the closet.

     Renee and Louise were experienced in how to set the worry aside for a while. Cleaning always seemed to help them both.

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