‘She Proceeded to Empty the Bag’s Contents Onto the Small Table’

Her Bag

Dear Diary:

I was walking to the 6 train on a winter day after spending a few hours at the Metropolitan Museum of Art when I decided to stop for a cup of tea and a bagel with a schmear.

I found a small table next to two sisters who were engaged in a lively conversation and appeared to be in their 20s.

An older woman sat down on the other side of them. One of the younger women complimented her on her purse.

“That’s an Alexander McQueen bag,” the woman replied. “It cost me hundreds of dollars and I absolutely hate it!”

She proceeded to empty the bag’s contents onto the small table where she was sitting.

“I’m giving you the bag,” she said, putting it in front of the younger woman who had admired it. “I don’t want it any longer.”

The younger woman was clearly taken aback.

“I can’t take your bag!” she said.

“I insist,” the older woman said, stuffing the emptied contents into an old, worn backpack and then walking out of the shop.

— Julie Livingston