Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing,
Only a signal shown, and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life, we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice; then darkness again and a silence.


Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
"The Theologian's Tale: Elizabeth, IV"
Tales of a Wayside Inn, 1863-1874
Part III