Togetherness

I went, this past summer, to a tattoo convention where people gathered to celebrate the fact that they have decorated their bodies; to revel in the freedom that they have been granted to do so; and to inspire and encourage those who chose to do likewise. It was an interesting combination of people from those with a full set of sleeves and a piercing in every piece of cartilage that will hold a metal rod, to the little old lady who looks as though she could have simply gone to a piano recital got up to use the bathroom and got lost on the way back; People with tattoos on their heads and faces and people who have not a blemish on their perfect skin. First time tattoos, touch ups, cover ups, inspirational tributes that reveal the true artistry of the skin painting and big mistakes that will never be undone. I was amazed at the welcome and openness with which people shared the reasons for their tattoos and the stories that the tattoos told. When I left there I was stuck in stand still traffic on interstate 630 for just under 2 hours with people I didn’t know and the stillness of the moment caused them to get out of their cars and spontaneously socialize with one another. Standing in the middle of the highway, they talked about their day and shared cigarettes and anecdotes. They told their stories to perfect strangers in confidence that this will be the last time I ever see this person and anything they know about me is useless to them so I might as well spill it because why would I lie. They told their stories to perfect strangers in confidence that this will be the last time I ever see this person and anything I tell them they are bound to believe because they don’t know me and right now I can be anything and anyone I chose so I might as well lie. When the wreckage was cleared away and the cars began to move some of us were actually sad to go. I got home late and fell to sleep thinking that we had stood talking so easily in the middle of the highway and yet so many of us have neighbors, literally living in the house next door that we have never spoken to. People who live not one hundred yards from us for years and we do not know their name or their family or when they come and go and when they laugh and cry and when they love and die. God did not create us to be solitary. He made us to live together, to love each other and care for our neighbor.