A Different World

I am sorry about the first post, I was trying to do it from my phone, but it would not let me edit the message and add the photos at the same time.  Since the photos were on my phone, I loaded them first and then tried to save it as a draft.  As you can see it did not work that way.

So, here we go.  I have spent the past few days wandering the streets of the windy city.  I did not see much wind, but plenty of water.  Millennial park was a fun stroll in the evening and as you can see, many came here to play.  There were two of these towering man made waterfalls that randomly spit water on to the patrons.

It was fun to see that in the maze of towering edifice that were build years before the age of my birth, that people had place to gather and play.  

The biggest challenge for me was finding a point of reference, but there really was not one.  

One could only hope to exit a building where you entered and then follow the trail of crumbs you had left behind to get to your hotel.  Every few blocks you could look up to see a train passing by, reference the color and destination to know whether you were walking north, south, east, or west.

Then when you would just think you were getting the hang of it, you would turn the corner and learn that the street you were had just curved along the river.  Instead of going east and west, it was now going north and south.

I found myself starting to look for markings on the walls, familiar stacks of towering metal and concrete that would keep on my left of right at each street crossing, then I would have to remember which streets did not curve, the direction they ran, and common points of intersection that would get me back to my desired location.

It was a completely different world.  The creatures of habit living in this maze of brick, walked drone like from one location to the next.  Their eyes glazed over as if walking by GPS, only pausing briefly for the light to change to green.  

I wondered how long it had taken for them to become accustomed to living in the towering shadows.  I wondered how long it had taken for the light in their eyes to fade.  When did they no longer need to look for that familiar point, building, or street.  Were they really walking with purpose?  Did the know the direction they were going?  How often did they get lost in the crowd?

Many times I found myself sitting on a train and wondering if I could also get lost in the same manner.  Could I let me senses dull to the thriving people around me and just focus on getting from point A to B, missing all the little miracles between.  Maybe I already have done that.  Do I continually walk in my own mindless maze, minus the metal and concrete? 

How do I escape?