The Hell that was the Vertol Waiting Room

Circa the days before “Take Your Kid to Work Day”
School’s out... how do you keep the kid occupied? Drag ‘em along on sales calls.

DATELINE: Waterfront industrial sector. Low-rise buildings, sprawling parking lots and heliports baking under the sun.
With important aerospace clients to be dealt with, Courier One leaves our agent left to idle in the waiting room.

Time passes all too slowly. Mundane details are amplified by the quiet, stifling heat: the decade-old wood paneling... yellowing magazines and mildew-stained blinds... The stillness of awaiting businessmen slouched in cheap chairs lining the room. Dusty sunbeams creeping through louvers, the unbearable humidity brings our agent’s attention to the slovenly executive seated directly in front of him.

Time slows even more with every iota noticed... Sweat trickling down a greasy brow... Over-sized tongue lapping slowly and steadily at a melting popsicle, vanilla rivulets crawling down a double chin... Beady eyes focusing unblinkingly at our agent, seeing his suffering without relief in the intolerable heat.
Drip.

Drip.

Our agent chokes back tears of frustration. He sees the thoughts flickering behind our businessman’s eyes in between each slurp of his oozing refreshment:
The still, silent sadism of seeing others squirm.

Another drop of sweat: Drip.

The petty chuckle of hollow schadenfreude.

Another drop of vanilla: Drip.

And lo, the Timeless Voice from Above:

Agent: Take yourself outside of the moment and look at the picture.
You know wrong when you see it.
And you see it in this infernal vestibule.
And so what kind of man does it take to laugh at unjust misery? Know he cannot be of substantial depth or hold a modicum of taste with his gluttonous habits and reliance on material comforts.
The karmic wheel is already in motion, going around, going in circles, going nowhere, so this room of waiting with fumes unabating seems a fit recompense.
And should you see and learn, even though suffering yourself, you will follow the right path in Mahayana’s Great Vehicle with Dharma Wheels spinning and pushing you forward... Sutra Discriminating the Intention... No more waiting... no more waiting... no more waiting... ... ...