South Mountain Summit.

"All I can hear is the murmur of cars down below" Ben said, as we sat in my car at the summit of South Mountain this chilly November evening.

The view from the top of the mountain is certainly something to see, particularly Dobbins Lookout. I've only been up there a handful of times, but each time some sort of philosophical spark seems to ignite my thoughts.

A flood of speculation nearly swallowed up my mind as the two of us sat there, beneath the stars, looking outward to the north and east. Being up there always reminds of just how small I am in comparison to the world and how lucky I am to be apart of something so grand; so beautiful.

Watching an entire city functioning right before your eyes is so bizarre in a way. I couldn't help but pay attention to I-10 & AZ-60, wondering where all of those people were going. Were they driving home to their families, running errands, rushing to a night class, or simply out for a Monday evening drive? Thousands of lights could be seen all around the valley, sparkling like an on ocean of glitter.



Ben perched upward in his seat, "I wonder how many people are having dinner right now or how many people are with the one they love or in the company of the one they resent?" He made a very good observation: Hundreds of thousands of people are down below, caught up in the daily drama of life, and from up here those problems seem so small, so trivial.

Ben's deliberation continued, "how many people down there will die in a year, how many people will be born, how many of the children scattered about the city will grow up and actually make a change in the world, if any at all?"

As I sat there, I thought about how many people were committing their first crime, how many people will end up in jail in the future, and even how many are trying crystal methamphetamine for the first time since this place is known for it. How many people down there, in the valley of the sun, are contemplating suicide or praying for a miracle? The list of ideas is seemingly endless.

The way of the world is just so.....intense, even when sitting on top of a mountain. You realize so much about the intricacies of life: beauty, appreciation, importance, lack of importance, gratitude, sadness, happiness, -- again this list could go on and on.

After living here for a year and a half now, I can't help but continue to be mesmerized by the beauty of this place. What a brilliant decision on my part to choose Phoenix of all places to move to! Living here makes me feel alive in so many ways and sadly I feel like I'm amongst a small population of people in the world who truly love where they live. Just remember people, if you can dream it, you can be it.

At Dobbins Lookout, stands a beautiful stone building that may be hundreds of years old or even something as new as the city of Phoenix itself. Either way, it gave me an idea for something in my future that I can't yet share or decipher -- basically because its something that has yet to be approached. But I hope that whenever any of you out there get a chance, that you'll take a quick drive up and check it out, because then you will see what I'm talking about.

"I wonder how many people down there are having sex right now?" I say to Ben, a smirk on my face indicating that perhaps it's time to head home.