Resonance and wonder

I looked up one last time determined to capture an image to remember forever, each tiny detail intact. The girl walked away into the distance and the smiling huddle began to disperse. Walking back to the station, I could see the Xmas market at Champs Elysees which had immersed me in its cinnamon-coffee smells, fairy lights and cozy stalls just about an hour ago.
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The walking tour I’d taken ended at…the Eiffel of course! Looking hard at the black metal structure, I was tried to figure out what it was about this glorified TV antenna that had moved my father to tears when he first saw it 10 years ago.
The evening I spent at Champs Elysees finally made the magic of Paris come alive for me. Like in The Devil Wears Prada, I was alone, in Paris and in love with it. I seemed to have forgotten the insult and loneliness I’d been feeling from my friends’ cold and reluctant welcome at their apartment the night before. I could no longer feel the cold hard floor below the thin sheet on which I was lying or the shame and humiliations of having forced myself at a place where I wasn’t welcome. I reluctantly began walking towards the Eiffel to watch the “special 125 years show”-obligated to see it despite my earlier disappointment.
I was still midway, on a bridge, when I saw the show begin- a ripple of neon lights rushing up and down the Eiffel. Despite my “What’s so great about the Eiffel” mode I couldn’t help feeling a rush of excitement.
I reached the base of the tower where a small crowd had gathered, breathless from walking. Watching the patterns that the different colored lights were merging into and out of, I was trying to figure out what was making this show so vibrant. The fireworks? The live music? They were nice, but hardly extraordinary. I looked around to see everyone looking up with a glassy-eyed stare, there was a certain energy in the group and yet everyone seemed oddly expressionless. Was everyone experiencing what I was going through: being so taken in by the moment that they weren’t sure what they were feeling? Suddenly a girl broke into a carefree jig and broke the jinx: everyone was free to smile. I could feel mine right up to my knees and fingertips. Though no words were exchanged, it was like all of us had known each other forever.
I have heard of people being moved to tears when they are in harmony with nature, but I knew I had experienced unqualified joy at spectacle purely sensuous in its appeal. I had never felt more content by myself.