The waiting area hums with the usual weekday hospital murmur. People scroll through phones, mutter low conversations, or simply stare at the floor, counting down minutes until their appointment. Nurses hurry past with practised speed, doctors call patients names, and the routine ticks along. Suddenly, a strange hush falls. The door opens and in shuffles an elderly woman. Her coat is threadbare, faded by years, and she clutches a worn leather handbag tightly.
Her gaze is calm, yet deeply weary.
Patrons begin exchanging looks. A few younger ones start whispering:
“Does she even know where she is?”
“Perhaps her memory’s gone?”
“Has she actually got the money for the consultation?”
Silently, the woman moves to a chair in the corner and sits down, seemingly oblivious. She doesn’t appear lost, merely out of place in this sterile realm of contemporary medicine.
Ten minutes pass. Suddenly, the door from the operating theatres swings wide. In strides the city’s most renowned surgeon – Mr. James Norton, whose name adorns the honours board by the entrance. Everyone knows him – patients, students, colleagues. Tall and serious in green scrubs, he bypasses everyone and goes straight to the old woman.
“So sorry to keep you waiting,” Mr. Norton addresses her sincerely, his hand resting respectfully on her shoulder. “I truly need your guidance. I’m at a loss.”
The entire waiting room freezes. Whispers die instantly. All eyes are wide; no one grasps the scene. This man, usually pursued by reporters, stands before the frail woman with near reverence.
The silence is broken by a receptionist: “Hang on… That’s Professor Anderson! The very one who headed the surgical department here at this hospital twenty years back…”
Understanding dawns. This woman isn’t just a retired doctor. She’s a legend. The pioneer who saved lives long before the age of advanced scanners or robotic surgeons. The esteemed surgeon standing before her? He was her student. He called her in because he faced a complex case, doubting his own certainty. He knew only she possessed the insight others lacked.
The woman lifts her eyes and answers softly, “Right then, let’s go and take a look together.”
And every person who moments before had whispered and judged, lowered their gaze to the floor.
