Near-life Experience

The first time I realized I had a near-life experience was last year in the fall. I was visited by a friend from San Fransisco and we went for drinks in my neighborhood. Later that night we went to the park with a couple of tall boys of Pabst and sat on the bench in the shadows and watched people wander by. It was really late, because I realized that moisture was starting to gather in the air in preparation for the morning's dew. My friend and I hadn't spoken for a few moments - the water particles were swirling in the convection currents around the street light in the park - I finished my beer and realized that I felt alive for the first time in a while. Or, at least I came the closest to living that I ever had. That moment - the experience of that moment - was so individual and special that it became etched into my mind as a singularity.
Now I wonder what the perfect conditions are for such instances in the future. Could the experiences be touched off by the appearance of my surroundings? I've often felt that I've seen things just as perfectly as they could be arranged in their space - accidental installations that should only be viewed from one aspect. I tend to think that the naturally occuring composition is only a part of the setting for the near-life experience. The others could include smells or sounds or just a contemplative thought.