Author: Dr. Hare

Jens,

it is good to hear from you, though you’ll forgive me for taking a few days before I reply. I’m not altogether pleased by being at the receiving end of your endless excuses. I am not an airline, as in, I’m not going in for the practice of over-booking. When we make an appointment, you better mean it, or else I will not fit you into my schedule next time. There are patients––yes, that is the word, not “friends”––who are actually relying on this schedule. That being said, and I almost regret to say it, I’m just not sufficiently offended to refrain from replying. Perhaps you should take this as further confirmation that we are not, as you seem to think, personal friends. I would never have anyone ‘stand me up’ so many times, and still continue to engage with them, if it wasn’t for professional reasons. I like your photos, though, they do speak to the bleakness of the holiday season. If you feel like it, we might meet in a bar here near my office, though not for wine. An espresso is the best I can offer. I was going to tell you about the conference in Davos where I presented on your case, and that is, admittedly, not a topic for an official appointment.

Dr. Hare

Dear Dr. Hare,

I’m writing to apologize for the missed appointment right before the holidays. I feel terrible for not showing up when you had gone out of your way to accommodate me. Alas, the holidays affect me in the most predictable fashion. One moment I’m cheerfully having dinner with friends and the next moment the pointlessness of working on deadlines even during these days is just killing me. In any case, as I was walking across the park, hoping to be at your East Side office in time, I got absorbed with the roots and branches criss-crossing the ground in Central Park. I ended up feeling more like myself than I have for a while, focusing on these patterns and the photos I was taking. And I felt that maybe that was what I needed. Would you be up, finally, for meeting outside of your office, for a glass of wine perhaps? By now we are, you must admit, old friends, so please say yes.

Jens

Dear Dr. Hare,

the idea that my case could be presented at a Swiss conference is thrilling and mortifying at once. It does deserve in-person consultation, does it not? And what could be better than seeing your therapist in the Alps? Do let me know, I’m checking flights right now.

Jens