Left Behind

Dear Delyara, A cheap, black telescopic umbrella has been sitting in the corner of the staff breakroom since last winter. One of its tiny metal ribs is snapped completely, poking through the synthetic fabric like a broken bone. Nobody claims it, and nobody throws it away; it has simply become part of the room’s permanent geometry. It's strange how an object completely loses its connection to human use and just becomes a landmark of collective, quiet indifference.