He sat watching the old man across the street with interest.
It would be hard to judge his age beyond being old. Probably the same age as me, he thought. He noted the man’s large sturdy-looking frame, but at the same time how he walked very slowly. Maybe it was age, together with some degenerative condition, he guessed. Could be anything; hard to tell. He had come out of the large building opposite and was making his way to the top of the building’s steps. He saw how difficult it was for him to walk the short distance. He watched as the man made a desperate grab for the handrail. His whole body language showed the relief he felt by having something to hold on to.
Then came the tortuous step by step as he came down. There must have been more than a dozen of them. He looked on. He wasn’t going anywhere for the next few minutes, so he could simply observe. He nodded slowly and smiled as the old man left the bottom step and sauntered away along the footpath. He sat thinking about what he had seen. Envy was never a part of his personality. Well, maybe just a little. Anyway, envy without resentment was alright, wasn’t it?
He was startled when his wife returned and tapped on the car’s side window.
“OK? There ready for us now,” she said.
She went to the boot for his wheelchair.