Can you hear them move? Does the movement of thousands to one tiny point in space cause a seismic shockwave?
A woman in lilac steps out into the light after 7 years isolation, 15 out of 21 years alone in her lakeside compound. The last time Aung San Suu Kyi was released, there followed an elaborate plan to assassinate her.
And this time? From totally incommunicado, barring a radio and a lone lawyer permitted to meet with her after applying each time to Naypyidaw, she walks out her door into the euphoria of thousands of followers, so loud in their greetings they drown out her first words. She invites them to a gathering tomorrow.
And then? The business commences anew. Without pause.
Here's to the possibilities beyond...and to the collective joy of Burma to see returned to them a leader deeply revered and beloved despite a litany of efforts to destroy her good name, her livelihood and her spirit. All this only a week after the roundly dismissed elections, replete as they were with violations and instances of fraud that friends inside risked all to compile.
To say so little so late, for my part, is not to diminish the significance of events. Only to point you to better roundups and shrink from offering thoughts too tinged in empathy.
Lots up ahead, so don't crack open the champagne just yet.
