Two Dancers Dreaming

David Gonzalez, Dancers Mott Haven, 1979

I am in absolute love with this photograph. I have witnessed the dance countless times, from the sidewalks and boroughs of New York to the warm, blue Caribbean waters of its birth. I know the moves, the rhythms, the music that draws and compels this couple together. Life celebrated, and life lost. 

The steps are second nature, executed with the utmost finesse. The dancer would never betray the dance, but it is routine now, the passion dissipated.  She's done it too many times, under too many promises; so she exhibits her grace, displays her charm, but she no longer dreams. 

While he... He cannot help but dream. He clutches intensely as the rhythm takes hold; it pervades his body, rejuvenates his desire. Gone is the life that has thrown him about, the people that he has deserted, and that have deserted him. Now he will match her every step and challenge her to make good on the best she still offers. Two people dancing the rhythm of life in a street neither could escape, the dance now all that's left of dreams. 

Two dreamers dancing, two dancers dreaming...