Weather

by Jenny Offill

I’ve noticed that Margot listens differently than I do. She pays attention, but leaves her own stories out of it.

There is a period after every disaster in which people wander around trying to figure out if it is truly a disaster. Disaster psychologists use the term “milling” to describe most people’s default actions when they find themselves in a frightening new situation.

The core delusion is that I am here and you are there.