The beauty of missed calls back in the day

Missed call! It was always the ship that passed in the night. When we were

If you heard the phone while out at the washing line and ran in, tripping over the cat, hands cold and damp and just missed the call, it felt like a sliding door to a parallel universe had just closed. Or they might have called back later and the path to destiny resumed. But supposing they didn’t?

The best missed call was the one you never knew you missed: When you were out and the phone rang away in the silent house. Your mind was untroubled by the different trajectory your life might have taken.