Airport thoughts, vol 2 (Riga)

Riga Airport, 10 pm. Another tango journey behind me, I sit at almost exactly the same spot as three days ago and marvel at the way these trips always manage to reveal something new to me. How, at the same time, one can feel so drained - and yet so fulfilled - by this madness we have chosen as our hobby.

The secret lies somewhere in the inexplicable, fleeting moments of deep human connection, of reaching across the divide of geography, history, language and culture. Of sharing your joys, sorrows, dreams and disappointments in the wordless communication of a full tango embrace. Of two people becoming one in the spiraling, continuously evolving movement to music that touches the deepest reaches of your soul.
The unpredictability of it all is probably what keeps us so hooked. No matter how many attendees you know in advance or what kind of marvelous dances you had with them in the past, there can never be any guarantees that this time, you will be granted even a fleeting sensation of unity.
But similarly, you never know when a total stranger embraces you for the first time, and suddenly, it all makes sense again. Suddenly, you can hear the faint echo of your dreams, those flickers of light that had been extinguished for so long.

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