The Gathering

The room was silent as the woman walked in and proceeded to the only empty chair available. She noticed that everyone had stopped talking and looked at her as she entered the room. As she sat down, the people returned to their interupted activities, and she listened to the chatter around her. She observed her fellow roommates making note of who seemed to be with someone and who was alone. She noted who seemed happy or excited or nervous. She also noted that some people seemed upset. Glancing up at the clock, the woman saw that it was five minutes past nine o'clock. The program was to start at nine o'clock.

As the clock ticked on, she saw people begin to squirm in their seats. The comments began to focus on when the program would start. People wondered if they were in the right place. They wondered if they had gotten the date wrong. They wondered where the speaker was. Some people spoke of leaving. Others got up and started to put on their coats.

The woman watched as the clock's second hand moved steadily towards the twelve. When it landed on the twelve, the minute hand moved to the two. It was ten minutes after nine o'clock. She watched as people continued to squirm, get up, put on their coats, and leave. She watched as a few people relaxed and enjoyed their conversation. She noticed all the different reactions and decisions taking place all around her. She never said a word or made a move.

At nine fifteen with the room half full, a man entered the room, stopped right inside the doorway and announced, "I'm sorry everyone, but we have not seen our speaker arrive yet. We've tried calling, but we were only able to leave a message. We apologize for the inconvenience and will be happy to refund your money on your way out."

As the woman watched the people around her gather their things and start to leave, she stood up and said, "Isn't life just like that sometimes. You're waiting for someone to show you the way, and they just don't show. There you are left with all your questions and confusion and disappointment wondering what the hell happened to them," a few people listened to her, but most of the people just continued putting on their coats as she continued, "Thing is that life like people are not always on time, nor does life present itself the way you expect it to; just like people. The answers to your questions could be right in front of you, and you'd never recognize them because you have a preconceived notion of what they're supposed to sound like or look like; just like people. Everyone, I am tonight's speaker," she ended and sat back down in her chair.

The man at the door looked at the woman. He moved in front of the door and prevented any more people from leaving.

Soon people who had left the room began walking in and taking their seats. The room was quiet.

The woman remained seated and silent. She looked down at the floor, closed her eyes and thought, "Peace be with you."

As she raised her head and opened her eyes, she took the time to look at each person in the circle. She took a moment to look into their eyes and note their reaction to her invasion of their space. She noted the discomfort in the room.

"When I was asked to speak to you tonight, I asked that I be paid for my time. I requested that I be paid a hefty amount of money for my time. I also asked that half the people here be allowed to attend for free and that donors be found to sponsor their attendance. I set a lot of boundaries and conditions upon my appearance before you tonight. It is only because all of these conditions and boundaries were met that I am here with you tonight. One of my boundaries, a condition if you will, was that my name would remain private. So tonight as I start my talk all you will know is that there is an unknown woman speaking to you tonight; and that the person sitting next to you may or may not have paid that expensive ticket price. Shall we begin?"

A few people nodded as a man across the circle said, "Yes, already."

"I said what I have to say," the woman said, "If you were still in the room, you may have heard it. If you left before I spoke, you missed it."

The room buzzed. People asked other people what she said. People complained. People looked at her in shock with their mouths hanging open. One person sat very still and smiled.

The woman got up from her chair, took her phone out of her pocket and checked it. There were three voicemail messages.

"I'm going to turn on the speaker and play these messages for you. I don't know who they are from," she said and pressed a button.

"Message sent at eight forty five," the machine said, beeped and continued, "We're waiting for you at the front door. We were expecting you at eight thirty. Please call us," the machine continued, "Press nine to save this message. Press seven to delete this message."

The woman pressed a button.

"Message sent at nine," the machine said, beeped and continued, "Still no sign of you. The room is packed. Are you coming? Are you OK? Please call us as soon as possible," the machine continued, "Press nine to save this message. Press seven to delete this message."

The woman pressed a button.

"Message sent at nine ten," the machine said, beeped and continued, "People are trying to leave. We're doing our best to stop them according to your conditions, but they're upset. We can't hold them here forever. Are you coming tonight? We need to hear from you. What? Yes, I've tried her home phone. No, I didn't get through. I'm doing my best. What? Oh shit. I didn't hang up. Please call us. We've got a lot of angry people here," the machine continued, "Press nine to save this message. Press seven to delete it."

The woman pressed a button, closed her phone, put it back in her pocket, looked at the people and said, "Whether or not it was wrong to fuck with you, I did. Life is like that. Why is life like that? Because people are like that. We all know that. Thing is, you all came here to hear some sage speak about something you thought you needed more perspective on. You came in good faith, grateful for the chance to possibly gain some clarity. Your faith was tested. How long did it take for you to give up? How long did it take for you to become disillusioned? How patient were you? For those who were comfortable and willing to wait for what they considered a long time, no gloating; many fools die in the desert. Personally, I don't know why anyone would pay what they paid to hear me speak. You might be feeling the same way right about now. If you're willing, I'd like to hear about why you came here tonight. We've got as long as everyone in the room would like. If there is someone who is on a time schedule they cannot break, please speak first and feel free to leave whenever you have to. I'd like to listen for a while. If you feel the need to bitch me out for how I've started this evening with you, go for it. If you have any questions, I'll be happy to do my best to answer them. Just one more thing before you speak, though. I have a few conditions. You may not say whether or not you paid for your ticket yourself, nor can you divulge any of the other instructions that were given to you about your attendance at this gathering tonight. You have my full attention. The floor is yours, people."