I can't remember the author or title, but it was in one of those "best science fiction/fantasy of the year" collections from the 1990's. It's about a woman who finds a year's worth of time, just lying on the sidewalk, as though it were a coin or something. She's thrilled, because who couldn't use a year of free time to use any way you like? She takes her time to a Time Shop, where an angel shopkeeper (wearing an Armani suit, with holes in the back for his wings) shows her all the ways in which she can redeem her time: holiday time, family time, quality time with her spouse, etc. She can't decide and takes it home to her husband, who is a no-nonsense business type of person, who demands that she cash it in, saying that "time is money!". This disparity in values makes her realize how unhappy she's been in her marriage, and she goes back to the mall where the Time Shop is located to spend it on something worthwhile. Before she goes in, she sees a young gay man in a wheelchair, who is obviously in the late stages of AIDS, and suddenly decides to offer her year's worth of time to him, which he gratefully accepts. Then she climbs in her car and takes off, intending not to return to her marriage. The last scene in this story describes her seeing a bumper sticker on a car in front of her which says: TIME FLIES LIKE AN ARROW. FRUIT FLIES LIKE BANANAS. She doesn't get it at first, but when she does, she laughs, she howls, and she smashes the clock on her dashboard with her fist.
Can anyone help me find the title and author of this story? It spoke to me in a very personal way, and I'd love to find it again.
Can anyone help me find the title and author of this story? It spoke to me in a very personal way, and I'd love to find it again.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram