For Heshy Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik once wrote in his piece “The Community,” dedicated to the memory of the Rebbitzen of Talne Quite often a man finds himself in a crowd among strangers. He feels lonely. No one knows him, no one cares for him, no one is concerned with him. It is again an existential experience. He begins to doubt his ontological worth. This leads to alienation from the crowd surrounding him. Suddenly someone taps him on the shoulder and says, “Aren’t you Mr. So-and-So? I have heard so much about you.” In a fraction of a second his awareness changes. An alien being turns into a fellow member of an existential community (the crowd). What brought about the change? The recognition by somebody, the word!
One of your best!