Sitting at our local Starbucks in La Plata, MD., I noticed an elderly couple walk in, ordered some drinks and sat at a table. I’m an outgoing person and I’ll talk to anyone in earshot. They were too far away to say anything, so I just watched them, whenever I took a break from my laptop.

 

They interested me, so I took a break from writing and studied them instead. People watching is an unexpected pleasure I get, while I sit in the friendly confines of the air conditioned atmosphere.

 

I would guess they were close to the eighties, if not in them. She had her right arm in a cast, so he gently held her left elbow as he ever so slowly guided her toward the table. He made sure she was comfortable, before he went to get their drinks and napkins. I overheard him tell the barista, “Can you pour a little out of this one and put this much ice in it? This one’s for my wife.” As he said that he held up his right thumb and forefinger with about an inch and a half distance between them.

 

The barista said, “Of course. Hope you all are staying cool in this heat.”

 

“Yeah, we like coming here, because it’s so pleasant.” He took the drinks to the table and sat across from her using very calculated movements. I could tell almost every action he made was for her convenience. They seemed to be the same age, but it was apparent he had more life in his bones than she did. It was obvious he cared for her very much.

 

Every action she made was slow and deliberate, no wasted energy. I noticed from her gingerly movements, that she was either very ill or too old to move any quicker.

 

Finished with their drinks he cleaned and straighten the table as she sat. He then helped her up and before they headed to the car he took the time to push the chair in. When he was helping her into the car, that’s when I noticed they both had light blue shirts, tan pants and the same colored loafers. Both of them had the same completion, height, weight, hair color and they dressed a like. Were they that similar, when they met or did they grow that way?