Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

Who wants whom? Who wants someone else’s attention or expertise? People tend to forget the answers.

You called me.

We called him.

These mean something—important. We called him. We want his time, attention, expertise—we want something he has and we don’t have.

The same when you call me. You want something of me.

Then things roll downhill or around the hill or something. Things become confused. Now you are doing me a favor. Wait. What? You called me. How is it that you are doing me a favor. Wait. What? We called him. How are we doing something for his convenience?

“Sir, I called you because I think we can help each other. This will be good for both of us.” Yes, mutually beneficial, but still, I called first. Let’s not forget that.