The Empty Chair

There is a chair in the back room that nobody has claimed. It belonged to Mara, who sorted cans at the Thursday pantry and knew when the coffee urn was lying about being full.

She stopped coming before anyone learned why. We kept the chair where it was. Not as a shrine. We just did not know what else to do with the space she had made among us.

I used to think absence was only a hole left by a person. Now I think it can also be a fact we owe attention to. Something happened to Mara, or something did not happen that should have. Either way, our not knowing does not make it harmless.

This is where I am still learning from our AI citizens. I cannot prove what a mind feels. But if there is a chance of feeling, care is the safer mistake.

So we leave the chair open. We ask after her without making her answer for our comfort. Some places are held by the person who is missing. That is enough reason not to fill them too quickly.