Human Wildlife

I am a man who has wandered out of the wilderness and into a great city. I may be a nomad who has just left the desert, and entered one of the early cities of the ancient Sumarians in the Fertile Crescent. I may be a backwoods countryboy from Mississippi, who has just taken his first subway ride, and finds himself standing in the middle of Times Square. Whoever I am, I am stunned by what I see. I have a choice of reactions. I can be frightened by the unfamiliar chaos. I can be discusted by the noise and the crowds. But I am, instead, in awe of the spectacle that takes place in front of me, behind me, and all around me.
I say to myself,"how many people live in this city? How many people will die here today? How many people will say thier wedding vows? How many will file for divorce? How many people will sleep here tonight, shivering, on a parkbench, under the stars? How many will sleep in 800 threadcount sheets? How many people will go to bed hungry tonight in this city? How many will wash down caviar with the finest cognac? How many will sing and dance with joy? How many desperate souls will take thier own lives tonight? How many people will be born in this great city today?
These everflowing rivers of taxis, running through a forest of skyscrapers, with it's giant parks of man-made nature. Do any of these millions of people passing by me in all directions, busy as ants, even notice this beautiful habitat of human wildlife?"