I was in my mid-20s (about 10 years ago) when this occurred. A friend had a small group of us over and we were drinking and carrying on， and by night， we were all feeling pretty good. At around 3 in the morning， we had the brilliant idea of going outside and wandering the neighborhood.

For starters， the neighborhood was in a not-so-great part of town， pretty well-known as a haven for drug users of all kinds， mostly crackheads， as well as gangsters and general thugs. While I didn’t live too far away， the difference was night and day. I knew better than to wander this area， especially at night， but off we went. To add to that， we were pretty tipsy， talking quite loudly for the hour， I’m sure， just generally being disorderly.

We started crossing a small park， when we were approached very suddenly by a short， grinning black man. He appeared to be in his late 40s， possibly early 50s， with a thin afro， some of it gray. His smile was absolutely beaming and it made me smile hugely， too. It was the most infectious smile I’d ever seen. In fact， this man had the most infectious spirit I’d ever encountered. I felt joyous beyond belief. Immediately we greeted and hugged each other. We called one another by name without introducing ourselves， and although I can very clearly remember him calling me by my name， I couldn’t remember his name even as soon as the next day. But at that moment， we absolutely knew each other， absolutely loved each other， like no two people had loved each other before. The only other words we spoke to one another were， "I know you." And we said this almost in synch， as the hugeness of that thought just occurred to both of us. Our souls were absolutely intimate. The moment lasted about 30 seconds. My friends merely watched with astonishment because something was just generally so bizarre about that moment.

Then the man moved on around us， and I didn’t watch him go， but could see him leaving out of the periphery of my vision. I have no idea why that little detail strikes me as being so important， to this day， but it does. I’m sure I smiled on for another good minute， just being extremely happy. I was absolutely， positively， 100% no longer drunk from that moment on. The episode， the "meeting，" was not the result of being drunk， but it sure ended it.

I don’t know who that man was. I’d never met him in my life. I’m quite sure if you asked him， he’d say the same thing about me today. I don’t know why I know that.

What had been so beautiful that night the next day scared the hell out of me. I couldn’t understand what had happened. I remembered vividly what had happened， but it made no sense to me. Likewise， my friends all contend it’s the strangest thing any of them ever experienced. They all felt something "heavy" occurring as the two of us met. They somehow knew that we didn’t actually know each other， despite our reaction to one another.

Something purely spiritual happened that night， I’m quite sure of it. I’ll never forget it.