Knowing that some things happen only once in a lifetime, a man walking down a street is convinced that he sees the girl of his dreams and wonders if fate is telling him to leave his wife.

In a series of commentaries on the human condition — life, truth, happiness, death — a spinster sister takes in her dead sister’s children; a man is entranced by the endless waves which roll and crash in the ocean; a carpenter wrestles with the burden of being everyone’s confidante; a dying railroad crossing watchman shares a simple but complex wisdom.

A son tells a series of stories, most of them about his father and stepfather. As the son describes a robbery that took place at his house in high school and his experiences with his father, a former Jehovah's Witness and current alcoholic, he begins to recall details from his childhood.

When his wife accuses him of something he can't remember, a man must confront the memories that still linger in his mind.

A Polish immigrant feels her mind slipping away, as her surroundings and even her own body seem unfamiliar. After she's diagnosed with Alzheimers, she reflects on the importance of her memories and her past.

A young man tells the story of his first love after smelling a perfume that reminds him of the woman from his childhood.

A middle aged man becomes the talk of the town when he shares a crazy story regarding his missing friend and creatures that live beneath a water pump house.

A four-year-old black boy vaguely recalls a mixture of occurrences that puzzled him, including a sentenced hanging in his town of a man who allegedly murdered his wife.

A man from New York recalls his most poignant memories, realizing they were all moments when others had needed something from him and he had let them down.

A group of friends realize they have been living vicariously through one of their friend's travel stories for their entire lives.