He
had been speaking with a young lady who held a baby. I asked her
about a photograph, but she politely declined. I think I know why,
and this segues into a lesson for me.
The
main goal of this project is personal development in dealing with
people that I haven't met before. People are always treated
respectfully, hence the permission. But one of the additional ways of
showing respect is recognizing people upon encountering them at a
later time.
Within
the past six months, I have twice fallen down on this. I met and
photographed two women, and later encountered them, but did not
recognize them. One is a professional hair stylist. Not surprisingly,
her hair appearance changes dramatically from time to time. The other
woman once wore a hat, once had a scarf over her hair, and once was uncovered, with curls bouncing in the breeze. Ideally, this would not
faze me, as I should be able to recognize people by their eyes. But,
not always so.
Now
I have a further goal, to be more observant and mindful of those who
I meet. I want to avoid this embarrassment in the future.
Bob