Neurotic moment #967,222

The other day as I walked toward work, I realized I forgot to switch my black purse to my brown one to match the boots I was wearing. Before I became aware of the mistake, it was a beautiful morning and I was in a happy mood. But once I reached the street and noticed my brown boots hitting the pavement and the black purse swinging at my side, I immediately felt out of sorts. And now instead of enjoying my walk to work, I contemplated buying a cheap brown purse from a street vendor just to save myself from any further discomfort. Now, instead of savoring the cup of coffee in my hand, I began to fantasize getting back on the train and going all the way home to retrieve my brown suede bag. It no longer mattered that the sun was shining, I could no longer see the smiling faces. I was blind to everything except the toes of those brown boots, peering out from the dark blues jeans and hitting the ground, and that black shiny purse swinging back and forth, back and forth.

Suddenly, I noticed something else. A button. A button on the sweet green sweater I wore under my coat. It was a brown button, the same brown as my boots. And once I noticed that brown button peaking out from inside my coat, and my brown boots directly below, I felt a sense of comfort and relief. My coffee tasted good again, I returned to appreciating the mix of sun and cold air of a fall day, and as for the smiling faces, I still couldn't see any, but upon reflection, I don't think they were there before.