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This was in the Oregonian today:

My three minutes with Kerry
Friday, November 12, 2004
Paul Keller
IN MY OPINION Paul Keller

I realize that many of us -- especially here along our manifest-destined West Coast -- wish an amnesiac fog would simply wash away all memory of this country's recent presidential election.

And I know we're all sick and tired of this endless post-vote blabber about why John Kerry lost and how come George W. Bush won.

But, in the spirit of truth-seeking, universal enlightenment and full disclosure, please bear with me. I need to get this off my chest. You be the judge.

It's a sunny Sunday morning in the fall of 2001. I'm back in Washington, D.C., on business. A friend and I have walked to an upscale Georgetown grocery to buy a few treats.

With our hands full of this popular store's delectable bounty, we head for its two cashier stands. My friend gets in one line and I merge -- no more than five feet away -- into the other.

We've each got four or five people in front of us.

My friend -- from Boston, by the way -- sees him first. She quickly tips her head toward the unmistakable VIP.

No question about it. Tall and lanky, dapperly dressed beneath the familiar hair, Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., stands just two people in front of her.

I have not seen this man since a spring night in Eugene circa 1971-72 when he spoke to a bunch of us at the University of Oregon. I remember listening to this young voice of reason -- someone who had survived that terrible Southeast Asian war as combat grunt and was not afraid to speak out, firsthand, about its tragic ramifications. He wove a sincere compassion and kindness into his pragmatic insights. I truly liked, even admired, his persona.

But this is all about to change.

As we inch our way toward the cashiers, an elderly woman standing between my friend and The Senator finally gathers her gumption. She is obviously honored to be in this gentleman's presence. She is showing him humility and respect. She -- very politely -- starts to introduce herself.

We all watch.

The man turns around and scowls at her.

Unbelievably, he shakes his head "NO" as if petulantly scolding a child. It is a mean-spirited slap that screams: "I am much too superior to be bothered by the likes of you."

The Senator fires this nonverbal volley, then abruptly turns his back on her.

This cruel -- totally unexplained -- dismissive retort humiliates the poor woman into an awkward, hurtful silence.

It shocks us all.

Moments later, I am paying as Kerry is exiting.

I am no longer in shock. I am furious. After all, he is an elected official, a public servant, a person who by his own choice has cast himself into the public marketplace -- figuratively, and this day, quite literally.

I want to ask him what has happened since that evening in Eugene. Where did his compassion go? Why did he just do that?

But by the time I reach the sidewalk -- just like in a movie -- he slides into a waiting shiny BMW convertible. The male driver hits the throttle. They roar off.

I am left in their exhaust.

And I am left to forever ponder this event.

I think about it the last several months every time I hear Kerry described as "wooden" or "aloof." Even now, I keep wondering how Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton or even George W. Bush might have responded to that woman.

But mostly I keep hearing, over and over, the late John Lennon's lyrics:

"Instant karma's gonna get you."

Rhododendron writer Paul Keller's essay "Army Men" on his father and World War II has been published in "Best Essays NW" by the University of Oregon Press.