start a conversation with a complete stranger for the hell of it

I spoke to the man sitting next to me. Ok, it doesn’t really count because he was right there, but I was the one to initiate conversation. It was nice, he was an older professor working in RI, originally from Nigeria.

I was waiting for my driving instructor to pick me up a few days ago, when this lady who was also standing outside a house, waiting, struck up conversation. It was nice, it passed the time I would have spent staring at the leaves against the sky, but I need to go towards someone before this goal is complete.

This is actually a 2-part goal:

I Talk to a “regular” stranger – someone I don’t know at all but that I might see repeatedly, like the hairdresser, the librarian, the dining hall staff and the cashier at the supermarket

II Talk to a one-time stranger – someone I’m not likely to see ever again – like the person sitting next to you on a long train ride to another country, the old man sitting on the bench across from you, the girl sitting under a tree.

Then, I want to make it a habit.

I started a conversation with the girl at the hairdresser’s washing my hair the other day, but it felt awkward and halting. I want to do this without thinking about it, as though it were the most natural thing in the world, and have great chats with taxi drivers, sales assistants and beauticians.

I’ve started a conversation with a guy on a plane by asking him about what he was sketching. We’ve remained friends since. But that was a little too easy – he was sitting next to me for an 8-hour flight after all. I’d like a few more such experiences – and really seek out the most unlikely people to talk to and enjoy it – before I can say that this goal is complete.