My Human Thread in New Orleans

I laid on a futon cushion on the ground, staring at the reflection of the 'Face of New Orleans' as he quickly, but meticulously, cut his hair in a full-length mirror, which leaned against the wall as the only piece of furniture in the room.  My back was against the only window in the halfway renovated room as the dust absorbed the little sunlight that shined through, preventing the slightest twinkle of light from reaching the wood flooring.  A single bulbed lamp shined on his head, like a spotlight, as he took center stage to share with me the true essence of New Orleans- the people.

His words matched the rhythm of the local blues music that echoed down the hallway of the shotgun house.  Very rarely do we feel an extremely high level of content, in which confirms our intuition in any single given moment of time, that we are exactly where we are supposed to be, at precisely the right time.  I had reached that state of euphoria, as it felt like my spirit had elevated from my laying body, gracefully rising to observe this wrinkle of time from the rafters of the room.  How did I arrive to this moment?

His name is Dancingman 504, the face of New Orleans.  I stood up from the futon cushion and walked down the shotgun house towards the shower, in preparation for the 12th day festivities, which signalled the start of the Mardi Gras season.  It was Tootie Montana day, and Dancingman and I were going to his statue in Armstrong Park to pay our respects.  I first walked through the kitchen, then the living room before arriving to the shower, reflecting on the events that had unfolded in search for the, now repetitious and pestering question- how did I arrive to this moment of time?

It started with a follow-up email, that created a ripple effect of amazing people and events to follow.  After meeting Dancingman at a health fair at an eastside New Orleans high school, I followed up the next day with an email to his manager (the 'hey, great to connect' kind of email).  I was supposed to depart that day to Mobile, AL, but I chose instead to continue down this thread of events to discover where it would take me.  It took me down a chain reaction of amazing people and experience.  The result- the rawest cultural experience of a lifetime, against the sights and sounds of the Cresent City.

Dancingman playing with local band on Frenchman Street (©Crystal Shelton)

Member of Skinz and Bonez, a local New Orlean faux-gang (©Crystal Shelton)

Walking down Bourbon Street (©Crystal Shelton)

(©Crystal Shelton)

Skinz and Bonez in front of Joan of Arc statue on her 600th birthday (©Crystal Shelton) 

Imagine the countless people you didn't follow up with.  Or the people you come in contact with every day, whom you dismiss as insignificant occurrences.  Each one of those 'coincidental encounters', are the starting points of threads in time that will cause a ripple effect, taking you on a journey you never before imagined.

"My mother told me, she said, 'there is no one in this world, you don't have something in common with.  Everyone person in this world has one thing in common, if nothing else.'  I asked what is that, and she said, 'you have a mother.  You have a mother, they have a mother'.  And if you have one thing in common, you have two things in common, and from there you keep on growing." - Dancingman

Seize these opportunities today.  Say hello to every single person you make eye contact with.  Introduce yourself, and seek what it is you are meant to learn from them at that moment in time.  You can learn something from everyone you encounter!  Be open to the endless opportunities that will surely be presented.  And most importantly, follow-up.

These amazing photos were captured and created by Crystal Shelton, another amazing person in which directly resulted from my follow-up email to Dancingman's manager.  Follow-up with Crystal.

A special thank you to Dancingman and his manager for opening their hearts and home to me!  Connect with Dancingman on Facebook.  Follow-up with Dancingman.

Thank you to my friends Robin and Bryan for your generosity, hospitality and encouragement!  And thank you Jade, for placing me at the start of this thread!

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