Curiously connecting strangers.

I'm a master at it. Learning something curious and significant about a total stranger. Within two minutes of  a chance meeting. In the parking lot of the Safeway Grocery store in Scottsdale, Arizona. I had just unloaded my purchases from a push shopping cart. The stranger offered to take the empty cart. I told him that was a wise decision. Because I have a magical touch. Sort of like the mythical King Midas. Therefore, the cart was imbued with a magical aura. This was his lucky day. That prompted the guy to make small talk. About the relatively chilly early morning temperature. In the low 50s. 'Not chilly for me,' I declared. 'I'm from Minnesota.' I volunteered more information. That I usually spend my winters in Sardinia, with my Italian true love. Instead, we're meeting this winter in Arizona. 'Do you know where Sardinia is?' I asked. He certainly did. Once upon a time, he had sailed around Sardinia, the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Wow! Fancy that. In a brief encounter, we had learned so much about each other. That's the way life was meant to be. Strangers connecting. In curious ways. --Jim Broede