The traffic light turned green -- the woman took a quick
step into the crosswalk and then came to a rapid halt as a
speeding car almost brushed her while running the just-turned red
light in its lane.
"Yo! Watch it!" she thought, as she pulled her body back,
breaking her stride. Then, turning toward the car as it sped
past the intersection, she yelled, aloud, "You goddamn maniac!"
But her words didn't matter. The driver didn't hear her.
What's more, she knew, he probably didn't even care what she
said. Even worse, she figured, if he did care what she said, he
probably would have taken offense to it, totally oblivious to the
insult and near harm he had inflicted upon her.
So, she recollected her composure and resumed her walk across
the street, scurrying the last few yards to beat the change of
the light.
Her quick glance at the sidewalks ahead and to the side
revealed crowds of people determinedly rushing toward their
destinations, impervious to what was happening around them.
"Nobody cares; nobody even notices," she said to herself.
Then the woman walked on, briskly making her way to work,
barely cognizant that she almost stepped on a sleeping street
person who was making his home by a sidewalk grate.