Sometimes you just feel... invisible. You know that feeling? Like you’re just there, taking up space, and nobody really notices you or what you’re trying to say. It’s been happening a lot lately. I guess maybe it’s because Mom just… passed. Like, a month ago. And you’re relieved, sort of, cause the last few years were just A LOT. You spend all your time running back and forth, making sure she’s okay, dealing with nurses, doctors, her complaining about everything, and then she’s gone. And you’re just… empty. And tired. And suddenly you have all this time you never had before. So I guess I tried to use some of it to, you know, just connect with people. Like, my grown kids are busy with their own lives, obviously. Which is good! That’s what you want, right? But I still wanted to, like, talk to actual grown-ups about grown-up stuff. Not just, "Did you remember to take out the trash?" So I thought about this professor friend of my mom’s, this guy David. He’s like, 72 now, probably. Really smart, always publishing papers and stuff. My mom always thought the world of him, said he was like, one of the good ones. So I figured, hey, maybe I could just go meet him for coffee, sort of hear about his world. You know, just get out of the house, talk to someone different. And you go, and he’s so… he’s trying so hard. You can see it. He’s got this new place he’s working at, this university, and he’s like, all jazzed to tell you about it. And he asks me about my stuff, which is nice, but then he goes right into talking about his colleagues. And I’m just listening, cause, whatever, he’s excited. But then it’s like, it’s all about these NEW people. "Oh, Dr. Evans, she’s doing such interesting work on medieval poetry," or "Have you heard about Dr. Patel’s research on quantum physics?" And it’s like, this whole big group of young guns. And he’s so proud of them, I guess. He keeps saying, "They’re really pushing the envelope, you know?" And he’s trying to, like, engage with them. But then you hear him, and it’s like, they don’t even… they don’t even talk about HIS stuff. He’s trying to tell me how he mentioned his own latest paper, and they just kind of politely nodded and went right back to talking about Dr. Miller’s work on climate change. Which is important, sure. But it’s like, this guy, he’s been doing this for FIFTY YEARS. And they just… don’t care. And he’s trying to be cool about it, but you can see it in his eyes, he’s trying to connect, to be part of it, and they just… don’t see him. He said, "I offered to mentor some of the younger faculty, you know, share some of my experience." And they just said, "Oh, that’s very kind of you, David." And moved on. Like he’s just… old. And I’m just sitting there, drinking my lukewarm coffee, listening to this sweet old guy, and I just… I feel it too. Like, nobody wants your wisdom. Nobody wants your history. They just want the new shiny thing. And you’re just sort of… left. Like a ghost. All that time you spent, all that effort, all that you *are*, and it’s like, poof. Like it never happened. And you just want to scream, "HEY! I’M STILL HERE! I HAVE STUFF TO SAY! I’M STILL A PERSON!" But you don’t. You just smile and nod and say, "That sounds… interesting, David." And then you go home and you’re just… empty again. Only heavier this time. God, this sucks.