Contact

 “You're an interesting species. An interesting mix. You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you're not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we've found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.”
― Carl Sagan, Contact

I had stopped in the flow of the crowd right past the huge lantern at the entrance gate.  I wasn't just ready to jump into the sea of bodies moving towards the temple site.  The feel of the movement and the hundreds of faces around me captivated me and got my adrenaline going.  My husband had gone ahead with his friends and our daughters, and I had 30 minutes to soak it all in and immerse myself.  From where I stood, on the edge of a small elevated step, I could see over everyone's heads, well nearly, on my tippy toes.  I knew that I wanted to show the depth of the crowd in my shots, so I stretched high with my camera and looked in.  Honestly, I can't recall if I consciously saw this man looking straight ahead in my direction, but how peculiar and cool that he stands out amongst the others.  I think that he's striking, and at that moment takes on a significance.

He really makes me wonder about all of our encounters with the countless people that we pass during our daily travels.  Do we see them?  Do they see us?  Do we even make a conscious effort to see and engage, or are we each in our own zone?  Are there others trying to reach out to us somehow?   How awesome that in a split moment of time we are capable of stepping out of ourselves to make contact and connect, then move on our way.  I find a reassurance in that, and it feeds my spirit in just the right way.