The high pitched whirring sent small slivers of metal flying, the bystanders took a half step back, but the man with the trained hands didn’t even flinch. He has done this a thousand times before, each time producing a perfect replica of the key. He carries on to file and sand the remaining grooves and notches in the key blank by hand. Moving quickly and purposefully, sometimes with almost imperceptible flicks of his wrists. Finally, satisfied with his work, he holds it up to the light, admiring his masterpiece. A piece of metal has been transformed into a very useful object, one that opens, both literally and metaphorically.
Perhaps someone has taken a big decision and is having his girlfriend move in for the first time, or perhaps a parent from a distant country has finally made their way here, to live with a long lost son, in both cases, a new set of keys are presented as an invitation into their private space, an invitation to share a life together.
