The Quiet in the City

I took a walk today with a friend through Cambridge, the city I live in. We've been inundated here lately with snow and freezing weather. Today was milder, sunny, and almost like spring if you squinted and pretended. I saw a sign on a post that someone had strung with silk autumn leaves, like a scarf or a garland. To look at it you also had to take in the beautiful blue sky, and the church spires of Harvard Square. I saw a taxicab whose driver had taken the time to letter on the trunk 'don't be in a rush'. I'm sure he meant to direct it to fellow drivers who might have gotten so close that they were able to read his message, but I chose to take it in a more cosmic way, being on a leisurely walk and all. While my friend and I were talking I noticed the loudness of the quiet in the city on a Sunday afternoon. You could hear the snow melt, and the nice noise that car tires make when they travel on wet asphalt. I am going to try to notice more things like this on a regular basis. I think if I'm able to do it, it will be a constant reassurance that life is good, I am on the right track, and it will remind me that there are a million other people around me trying to notice them too.