people

i find myself musing about people this morning as i sit on my balcony in the chilly morning air drinking warm coffee- i watch them from here and listen to little bits of conversation, pass them on the sidewalk walking my dog, see them driving cars to places i don't know about- strangers. city strangers.  it was different when i was in my small town before moving to the city. most of the people that i saw day to day were familiar- friends or friends of friends or the local grocery store owner or postman or plumber.  but here in the city, rarely a familiar face. occasionally i see the girl from the small town starbucks or the man that helped jump start my car a few months ago.  why does it feel so different living around strangers rather than when i visit a city like new york and am surrounded by them constantly? it's been seven months in the city and i've met a few new faces. all of those, i like very much. but yet there are so many i haven't met. people.  we all have our own paths, our own destinations but why do some cross and others don't? does that change from place to place, from small town to city? are we more likely to cross paths with people when there are fewer of them or maybe we're supposed to meet certain people no matter where we live, even in the city.