connection
that's probably not a real word. or if it is, it doesn't mean what I mean by it. what I mean by it is that spark that passes between you and someone when for a moment you are a person and that one is a person and you recognize each other as persons. now that may mean nothing at all to some of you. I am told that some people, maybe even many people, just know everyone always as persons, and everyone always knows those people as persons. forgive me. that is so foreign to my experience that I don't really believe it. someone is trying to fool me. there is no world in which that happens. on my planet, two men meet as adversaries, competitors, possible opponents. a man and a woman meet as hunters, for each of whom the other is possible prey. but we are all civilized now, aren't we? most of us do not meet carrying a bow and arrow, or a club, or a spear. even most men do not meet each other packing heat. no, we meet each other, smile, say hello, shake hands, pretend we are all friends, and isn't this wonderful. skilled civilized people automatically remember the new meetee's face, shape, and name, under the label friend. really skilled civilized people remember also the date, time, event, and introducer. crimeney, what a lot of remembering! less civilized people, like myself, sometimes remember face and name and maybe the label friend. these less civilized people walk through a world in which most other people are feral, but have agreed not to attack each other under the aegis of civilization. hurray for civilization! but even these less civilized people have moments when connection happens. a poet meets a fellow poet, or remeets him or her, for instance, and something in the smile or the brightened eyes.... spark! oh yes. I know you. we share experiences even if our lives never run parallel. connection.
No comments:
Post a Comment