Now and then I have to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the moment, to Be Here Now rather than in a million other places mentally. I forget and essentially disconnect my senses, depriving myself of the joy of hearing*feeling*touching*seeing whatever is right in front of me.
So I commiserate with the 1,097 people who, on January 12th this year did the same thing. Thanks to Ali's blog for pointing out a fascinating article (and, in a way, research study) by the Washington Post. They set up violinist Joshua Bell (disguised) to play music (or "busk" as they say in England) in the L'Enfant Plaza metro station to see what happened. It's an illuminating read and more than a little painful to watch the video footage and identify with all those people rushing right past, missing the beauty right there in front of them. Ouch.
Reminded me of these lines from Gwendolyn Brooks:
Exhaust the little moment
Soon it dies
And be it gash or gold it will not come
Again in this identical disguise.
