Walking down the street you can notice three different types of people. The first type will look straight forward, or worse yet, look in the opposite direction as though the cat sitting in the window they are walking by has really grabbed their attention. Then there are those who will walk by, usually content in their own worlds, but on occasion they’ll give you a quick glance and a smile, maybe even a quick hello. But an all-together different breed roams the streets that have the ability to catch you off guard and boost your day. These are people who go beyond the quick smile. Their eyes are earnest, their attention locked, and their smile sincere. And when you get right up on them they will say something. Not just “hi” but “Hello, how are you?” Not only content to listen to your answer but occasionally complementing you, replying in kind, or even offering advice to brighten your day.

Coming from a small town I can assure any city-dweller that these kind people really do exist. Yet take a walk in any large city and it seems you would be hard pressed to find these people unless you are yourself one of them. So what sets the population centers apart from the town centers dotting America’s farm fields? This is something I’ve come to ponder on many-a-walk home.

One thought is that maybe there are just too many people. Can you imagine walking down Broadway or Clark and trying to be this friendly to the people walking by? It would be crazy. You would never make it anywhere. Worse off you would probably get a lot of rejections. Another idea I have is that maybe the congested streets of Chicago (or trash-ridden streets of New York) have a way of souring people. What do you think?