Better every day is Nothing

My wipers smeared the freezing rain across my windshield. I peered through the two clear stripes cut through the smear to the auto supply store.

By the time I parked, the rain had stopped. Inside the store there were no other customers and one guy behind the counter. He had a short cropped beard and a camo ballcap. He waved me over. I told him I needed wipers under thirty dollars for a 2020 Kia Nero. He tapped the keyboard. His bottom lip moved in rhythm to the keystrokes.

"Which ones you want? Low end is twenty-four, high end thirty-six."

"High end." I slid my card over to his tattooed hand, a star on each of his four knuckles.

When he returned with the wipers he placed them on the counter and looked at my forehead when he spoke.

"Want me to put them on for you?"

I nodded and we marched out to my car.

From his pants pocket he pulled out a folding knife to cut through the rigid plastic of the wiper packaging. In a minute he had the new wipers installed.

"Okay," he said, "you'll be able to see what you're doing now."

I nodded and thanked him.

He gathered the old wipers and packaging under his right arm and looked at my forehead again.

"How you liking the world right now," he said.

A smile cut across his face.

I stood quietly before I answered.

"Better every day."

He stood there looking at me.

"Oh, that's it?" he said. "I thought you were going to say more."

"Okay. I'll say more. I think the ones in power are losing their grip on their agenda."

"You think they're getting weaker?" he said.

"Yes. They expend a lot of mental energy all for the win. Not sure they sleep adequately."

"Yes," he said. "It's better than nothing."

"What?" I smiled. "What is better than nothing? The little sleep they get?"

He shook his head.

"No, I'm talking about indifference. To me indifference is nothing. The way you feel is not nothing. So you're better off than most. That's why you said you're better every day."

He looked over and a customer was entering the store.

"I have to head in," he said.

When I drove away it started to drizzle.

Think Mr. A 🫆