Pregnant Pauses

Today, on the Blue line, I ended up sitting between two young women who struck up a conversation about their pregnancies. Both were still early - in the third and fourth months. This was the first for one and the third for the other. Neither woman knew the other. They just started talking. It was a rather funny coincidence because I was coming home from visiting a very pregnant friend who's on mandatory bedrest and is hoping to be giving birth in the very near future - tomorrow if the baby concedes.

Despite a "concerted" effort to focus on the law review article I was reading, the conversation between these women was much more interesting. I was allowed to be a silent participant in this intimate conversation about prenatal vitamins not purchased, nausea, the desperate desire for the child to be born already, and the sleeping habits of neonates.

All three of us exited at the same stop and went our separate ways without the usual farewell rituals practiced by close friends. It goes to show that deep and longstanding acquaintance is not necessary for intimacy. People can talk about the personal in the space of four subway stops and then go on with the rest of their day feeling a little more connected and reassured. At least that's how I felt.