THE THINKING GAME
"What is taking Dad so long?"
"I don't know. Maybe he found a nice big Katol fish, so he's probably busy bargaining."
"It's so boring, sitting inside this stuffy car!"
"I know! Let's play a game."
"What, I Spy?"
"No, this is different. This is the thinking game. You pick a random person on the streets, in a vehicle, etc., and try to imagine what they're thinking at the moment."
"What's the point?"
"Point? I don't know, does every one of our actions have to have a point?I pick that man in the business suit. The one who's getting into the white Allion."
"Hey, why don't you go first?"
"Stop it with the sarcasm already. Anyway, I bet he's trying to figure out a new marketing strategy for the product his company will be launching soon."
"You don't even know his profession."
"That's why it's called imagination, silly. Anyway, your turn."
"Okay, I pick... that little girl sitting on the sidewalk. The one who tried to sell us the roses. She's probably trying to calculate how many more flowers she needs to sell to be able to afford dinner."
"That makes me wish we hadn't shooed her away. Alright, I pick the lady in the cerulean salwar kameez -"
"Cerulean?"
"It's a fancy word for deep blue."
"You could've just said that."
"The fancy word seems to go better with her appearance. I think she's planning a heart-wrenching and emotional speech for her husband that will persuade him to buy three more sarees for her."
"Hahaha. That's quite believable. Okay, so... I pick... that man in the white checkered shirt."
"The one standing in front of the clothing stores?"
"Yup. He's probably been planning on buying a dress for his wife for a while now, and since he's finally gotten this month's paycheck, he's trying to decide which store has the most affordable collection."
"Aww, that's so cute! Okay, now I pick...that sullen-looking driver, sitting in the black Premio. He's definitely thinking that he should be paid more, just for all the hours he spends sitting in the car and waiting for his boss."
"Someone should pay us extra, for all the times we've waited in this accursed car for Dad and his Katol fish."
"Very true."
"Is it my turn now?I pick that man over there. He's probably a university student though... you see him? Runing after the bus?"
"Oh yeah, he just managed to climb aboard."
"Yeah. He probably wishes he owned a car, and that he could just sit inside it with the air-conditioning on for as long as he liked."
"If he only knew."
"I know right? They always think they have the worst of it; always looking for more..."
"Something wrong?"
"Yeah, I kind of just realised the point of this game."
"What is it?"
"Never mind. It's quite depressing, really. Let's play a less depressing game. Let's just play I Spy."
"Fine. I spy with my little eye..."
The writer, aged 17, is an A-Level student at Sunshine Grammar
School and College, Chittagong.
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