A thrifted jacket has a history you’ll never know. Some people are like that too. Ask.

A secondhand jacket has been through a life you will never hear about, and the same is true of nearly everyone you pass in a corridor. People arrive carrying wear from events you did not see, which is why a first impression is only ever a reading of the surface. You are looking at the jacket and calling it the history.

Ask one person a question this week that goes past the surface. Where they grew up, what their family does, the best thing that happened to them last year. Then let them talk longer than is comfortable.