Two men sat at a table outside of a restaurant on a mild fall afternoon. A server approached them, and the older of the two, a healthy looking man approaching fifty, politely ordered an espresso. The younger man, a fairly athletic looking thirty year old, ordered a glass of red wine noticeably inspecting the attractive red-haired waitress from head to toe. The two gentlemen situated themselves and waited in silence for their drinks. A few minutes passed and the server returned with their order. They both thanked her. The young man, after admiring the waitress’s form as she walked away, began expressing his desire to be significant and to live a meaningful life.

“I need a change. I already feel like I am in a rut at work. I just don’t feel any purpose in what I am doing. This probably sounds weird and ridiculously poetic, but I want to set the world’s stage with the decor of ideas. Does that make any sense?”

“Be a speckle,” the older man replied.

“A speckle? An insignificant blip? A mere imperfection overlooked on an otherwise beautiful object? I think not.”

“Is the world not but a mere speckle from space? Doesn’t the astronaut’s comprehension of the Earth and it’s beauty change once it is viewed as a mere speckle in an ever expanding universe? I imagine the world could never seem so peaceful from any other vantage point. An imperfection you say. Have you not yet known a woman so well as to cherish that one perfectly placed speckle? You might call it a blemish. Maybe you are too young to understand that this mark is proof of the utter uniqueness of this person and the connection that you share. Don’t overlook the significance of a speckle.”

The young man gave a dismissive look, cutting his eyes away and pursing his lips together as if he just bit into something distasteful. He replied  “I would rather be the object on which the speckle sits, than the speckle itself.” He made the air quote gesture as he said the word speckle.

“And I am saying be a speckle anyway,” replied the older gentleman.

“Why would I want to be a speckle?”

“So at least someone is calm with you.”

The young man looked away shaking his head as the older man smiled and took a sip of his espresso. The waitress approached the table and asked if they would like to know the specials.

“Yes, of course.” The older gentleman replied, while the younger simply nodded, staring at the beautiful girl’s chest.