Sonder

Eyes, nose, ears, mouth.

Faces.

You see them all the time, so much so that you probably don't even think about it; hundreds in a day, thousands in a lifetime. They are just faces, a set of eyes, noses, ears, and mouths you see in passing and don't give a second thought to, just faces you see but don't know, and probably never will.

Just faces.

Sometimes you only get a glimpse, maybe on a crowded street or bar or store or theater; a quick glance or two, maybe eyes meet for a fraction of a second and that's it, if you make eye-contact at all. Sometimes that fraction of a second is all you get.

Sometimes you might get a bit longer than half a second. Sometimes you're lucky enough to run into that particular pair of eyes more than once, like co-workers or randoms at school or that one barista at your favorite Starbucks or the guy who always walks his dog at the same time every other night. You might make eye contact or say hello, give a nod of acknowledgement or smile out of polite courtesy. You may even be able to recognize that face but those are eyes you can't read, feelings you can't feel, stories you don't know. All you have are the glimpses, those fractions of seconds stacked on top of each other and nothing more. You may never see that face again.

There are upwards of seven billion people on this tiny rock, full of eyes and ears, noses and mouths, all different, all unique. But are they just faces?

Every face is more than just a set of features sucking oxygen and taking up space. Every face more than just nature in its natural habitat, roaming the earth as it has since the beginning of time.

Every face is carries the wear and tear of ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty years of life you have not experienced that has shaped them into who they are for the three seconds your lives intersect.

Every pair of eyes hides a story that you do not know; every beating heart is a living soul, a never-ending clash of light and darkness that you cannot hope to comprehend in passing on the street.

Every set of features is brimming with hopes and dreams, fears and failures, experiences and memories that usually won't earn a second glance from you, going about your own business, living your own life.

How many individuals have you laid eyes on today? This week, this month, this year? In your lifetime? How many souls have your eyes moved over without a second thought? How many lifetimes have passed before your eyes during your own?

Think about it.

Sonder.