The man by the lamp post

A man sits alone on a sidewalk next to a brightly shining lamp post on a snowy winter day in New York a few feet away from a warm and pleasant looking cafe. The man sits there and watches closely at all the people who are dressed up and at the cafe. The people in the cafe do not see him staring and continue talking about work and their lives. The man just simply watches them with each one of his light blue eyes. Eventually a waiter sees the man staring at all the people at the cafe and goes over to a fellow waiter and asks her, "why does this man just sit their and stare at all these people." the waitress replies, " I have no idea I've been working here for 6 years and I see him every night just siting there staring." Does he not have a place to go?" ask the one waiter. "I don't know the only thing I know is every night I see him there doing nothing but staring." "Have you ever talked to him said the other waiter." Now why would i talk to someone who every night does nothing but stare at us." "I'm going to talk to him says the other waiter." The waiter leaves the cafe and walks a few feet in the snow up to the man sitting next to the lamp post. The man continues staring into the restaurant as the waiter approaches. "excuse me sir." says the waiter. "yes" replies the man under the lamp post as he looks deep into the waiters brown eyes. "why do you sit here every night and stare at these people." "what else would I be doing" says the man as he continues to stare into the cafe. "I would imagine there are many better things to do then sit and stare into a cafe all night." says the waiter. "Like what." says the man. as he continuing his firm gaze at the people inside the cafe. "surly anything would be better then sitting in the cold looking at other people." said the waiter. "You see all those people in that cafe?" asks the man without averting his gaze. "yes of course i see them I served most of those people" says the waiter. "well they don't see me." said the man. "every single person in that cafe means everything to me at this very moment and not a singe one of them can see me." "I can see you." said the waiter. "but you are outside." said the man. "But I could see you when I was inside the cafe." "But you are outside." said the man. "ok" replied the waiter. "loneliness." said the man. "What." responded the waiter. "loneliness is the reason i sit here staring at those people." But why do you just sit here staring instead of coming inside and joining them?" "Because this way I don't have to be surrounded by people and be lonely while i sit out her by myself I am alone by myself and get to see companionship instead of being alone and surrounded." said the blue eyed man still staring at all the people in the cafe. "They look so warm so happy so blissful so… ignorant." said the man. "ignorant?" the waiter said. "Yes ignorant they are ignorant to loneliness." The man said. "can you be enlightened and still not be lonely asked the waiter." "I am not enlightened i am just not ignorant you are enlightened you are enlightened you can see me which means you are worse off then anyone." How does that make me worse off?" asked the waiter. "you see me and you also see them I can only see them and they can only see themselves but you… you can see me and you can see them you know about both of us which means you can't be any of us which means you have no place." "you have no place." The waiter responded now starting to get irritated. "I have a place I am by the lamp post watching the cafe while you well you are no where you are somewhere in the middle of the cafe and the lamppost you are in the worst place of all you are in between loneliness and happiness you are in between hot and cold you are in purgatory. "