“Somehow, as we grow up, we lose the knack for noticing unless we cultivate it as a practice. Outside my office hangs a trio of pictures taken by my younger son, Dan, who is doing just that. Walking through a park in Paris, he spotted an old man who had become friends with birds, and he started shooting pictures. In the first photo, the man’s hand is extended and one bird is perched on a finger. The second photo shows a second bird ready to alight, and in the third, both birds have just taken flight. To the casual observer, the pictures show an old man and some sparrows. To the eye practiced in attending, however, the photographs reveal an intricate dance of intimacy between one human being and the creatures with whom he has cultivated a relationship.”
-Kimberly Long, The Worshiping Body, page 41
