people watching

i have a couple hours, so here i sit, enjoying one of my favorite pastimes, people watching. the airport is a great place to practice such a hobby. even if for only a moment, thousands of paths collide at one, single terminal. they walk by in a hurry, rushed to get to the gate, to get to the plane, to get to the city, to get to wherever it is they are supposed to be. all these next steps in their journey are unknown to me as they walk by my seat against the window. but i enjoy watching them pass through my view for this moment our paths cross.

the business men are easy to spot for they walk with the confidence and arrogance of a seasoned traveler. they wear their suits and uncomfortably starched white shirts. often, they appear to be talking to themselves as they solve the world's economic problems over their bluetooth wireless thingies. at first i thought they were talking to themselves, until i saw the little piece over their ear. someday, i'll probably pass someone on the street actually talking to themselves and i'll think they're on the phone.

the school groups are also easily recognized and thankfully, scarce today. though they have traveled to another city, they still exist within their high school bubble, unaware of the commotion they automatically bring with them and more concerned with who said what to whom. oh, surely i was never that way.

the newlyweds are my favorites. thursdays aren't the best days to spot them off to their exotic locations, saturday and sunday would be prime watching times. they are so funny to me as they cannot even stand a moment of separation, sauntering down the busy corridor with arms entwined. while carrying all of their luggage, moving to their next destination, and without running into anyone else, somehow they manage to maintain an intense gaze at each other. it's really quite a phenomenal feat. their left hand sparkles and their eyes shine. their joy is contagious and i cannot help but smile. ah...someday.

many airline employees pass by me with ridiculously efficient baggage in tow. i wonder what their traveler lifestyle would like and if i would like it. perhaps for a week, but even i am tired of hearing how to fasten my seatbelt and what to do with my seat cushion in the event of an emergency. do they realize their suits make them look more like sailors at sea than pilots in the air?

i look onto the parents with small children sympathetically. i admire their little faces and the excitement of their squeels as they step onto the moving walkways. though my hats off to their parents and the way they've embraced the challenges of air travel with such little ones, i count my blessings that is not me and nor will it be for a long time.

then there are the older generation. [i will gave no age frame to this demographic for 'older' is a completely relative term] often, they can be spotted whizzing by on the terminal taxi with a look of either ecstatic glee or extreme fear. the walking ones take their time for they have learned the lesson most of us are too busy to hear, there is no need to hurry. however, i do wonder what fills their retired days.

i hope the man who just ran by me makes his flight and those soldiers all come back to their families.

now to finish my overpriced/undersized tea, enjoy the soft light by this window, and pick up the book i've been too busy to finish. i'll watch the faces pass by whose stories are a mystery to me. though they are unknown to me, i find comfort in the thought that i know a God who knows each of them by name. He knows their destinations and what puts the worry on their faces. He created a unique desire within them to love and a passion just waiting to be awakened. at their core, He gave them a hunger for something more in this life and He is pursuing them even now because He knows only in Him will it be satisfied; only in Him will we find life to the full. i pray that wherever they're going and whatever they're doing, they find Him along the journey.