Cosmopolitan

Do you ever wonder what's the first vowel to break the silence of each new day?

A rooster crows in the early hours of morning.

Who rises first, and when? Or why?

The first task to be accomplished. What did it entail? Was it utterly difficult? Did they manage it with ease?

A newspaper lands with a thud on a vacant doorstep.

Ting. Ting. Ting. A bicycle steers out of vision, cutting through the crisp air.

What time did you rise today? What was your first thought? A dream that you had woken to? The day of the week that it was? How many minutes past the hour had it been?

Or, how many people had risen the same time with that same thought crossing their minds? With perhaps, a mutual dream?

The churn of a tap to release hot water from the shower.

How many were afraid today? How many were worried today?

How many had no jobs? How many had lost jobs?

A case is pried open; two gleaming cufflinks stare back, unperturbed.

For how many, was this day, the day it all changes? That big step. That leap of faith.

And how many had wished for this day to never arrive? How many, had cold feet?

Lights are switched on.

How many had lost someone the night before?

How many had lost everything the night before?

Cheering children run into their classes.

Exactly how many whispered a silent prayer in their sleep? And how many woke up thanking the Mighty Force from within, deep?

A violin player practices her piece.

For how many, was today the first day of school? College? University?

And how many people stepped into work, for the very first time, today?

The train door opens and people bustle out.

Today, there are hurried glances, many. Furtive faces, several. Depressed expressions, somewhere. Pure ecstasy, elsewhere.

There are people reading.

There are people marking exam papers.

There are people running.

There are people listening to their iPods.

There are people crying.

There are people staring into the horizon, hoping against hope.

And there are people drinking juice out of cartons.

A bag plunges into murky waters from a helicopter, above.

For some people, those first rays of sunlight are all stopping them from facing their worst fears. For others, it is the start of a day, endless.

Now you can hear voices. Screams. Cheers. Laughter.

How many of those, are you sharing?

No matter how big we are. Or fat we are. Or how poor we are. Or what race we belong to. Or even what religion we turn to.

There is at least more than one of us that way.

And if you ever feel low, or upset, or hungry, or frightened, or cold...remember, there will always be someone out there feeling just the way you are.

And that day, you can relish the fact that you are not alone. In fact, you are united. United in a common purpose.

And that purpose is to live.

To live on.