I went to visit my favorite city this past weekend (no offense New York) and spent several days walking around our nation's capitol, Washington DC. The spectacular view of the freshly fallen cherry blossom petals left a beautiful imprint of the spring on my mind. I had waited, like so many others, for the arrival of warm weather and hoped that this weekend would prove spring was finally on her way to stay. To my chagrin, the sky was not as clear and wind not as friendly as I had hoped. However, the streets were speckled with people who were out braving the rain and the clouds. With the hints of brightness in their clothes and determined smiles upon their faces, it seemed that Spring would be forced to show up eventually if she didn't want to miss her own party.
Cities like NYC and Washington DC have made my habit of people watching a great deal more frequent, and out along the national mall I could not help but examine the passersby. Most were tourists; many were in the company of others. Two is apparently the most popular number, for I observed pairs everywhere I went, including myself. The public displays of affection between pairs usually generate mixed reviews. Tiny baby signs of affection are perhaps the most endearing. Overt and obnoxious behavior is usually the hardest, and if the pair happens to be standing in your way it becomes very annoying. Groups of three, four and five are less common, but much more exciting to watch, as you realize that not only are you glancing into the outward appearance of the group of individuals, but you are more often than not observing the life of a family. Families are the best to see. Little children complete the picture. The combination of interactions between father, mother, daughter and son are strikingly familiar and offer up a reassuring sign to the watcher that amidst the chaos in the world, traditional life will continue as nature intended. The rarest number you might see would be one. A single person walking is not as common and generates possibly the most questions in the mind of the observer. The loners and the explorers, those who search and those who run, the ones who stop and turn around to look, and the others who focus on an indiscernible object ahead. What are they walking towards? Where have they come from? Why are they not with another? For whatever their reasons and without examining their intentions, you cannot help but watch them, feel proud of their courage to venture out among the masses of groups, hope that they arrive at the destination they seek and fully appreciate the person that you, the watcher, happen to be walking with.
