“In a city teeming with …

“In a city teeming with people, it is easy to be seen by many but never truly be seen.”
– Michael Jay Miller

Riding on a packed Metro, reading a great book in a happening park, eating at “OMG! Can’t believe I got a table at blah blah blah!” a.k.a the new ‘it’ restaurant, standing in crowded sports bar cheering on the local team or running for miles and miles through the clogged streets of a bustling downtown  – all of these can describe the loneliest places a city has to offer. Didn’t you know, crowded cities are the new lonely.

Living in a city is to live in close proximity to large amalgamations of people, most of which will never ever know a single thing about you.  Leaving your small town, where, yes, everybody does know your name was surely stifling and unsatisfying, so a major change was in order. Little did you know that more people does NOT equal more friends, connectivity and, least of all, concern about your well-being. Until you make new friends, you are more alone then ever.

The more effort you put into going out and doing fun, exciting things, the more depressed you feel. If you build up the courage to leave your brand new amazingly tiny condo, you’ll soon find walls of people that all seem so content and even friendly–just not with you. Why would they be? They don’t know you or even have reason to…

The scenario is the classic “damned if you do, damned if you don’t.” Going anywhere means leaving the loving walls that embrace you when you’re home and in its place are countless walls of indifference constructed by people that couldn’t care less about you. Doubt creeps into your head as you hear the whispers of your hometown getting louder and you begin to doubt your decision to leave comfort behind. Maybe cities are too big, too uncaring, too unfamiliar, and just too lonely.

And then.

And then, you make friends. In no time, you are laughing your way through hours upon hours on packed Metros, you’re horsing around in happening parks, you’re eating at countless “OMG!” new ‘it’ restaurants/dive bars/food stands, you’re standing with others in a crowded sports bar cheering on the local team, or you actually start to looking forward to running alone so you can have a few moments of solitude as you continue to run for miles and miles through the very same clogged streets you did before.

Ultimately, you realize that the world wasn’t tilted, it was just flipped upside down and it was YOU that needed upended. As with finding jobs and getting ahead in life, it’s always always always about who you know!