I was walking down the stairs of my parking garage, lost in my own thoughts, when a peculiar sight stopped me dead in my tracks. A single Marine, in crisp dress blues, stood in front of a hookah bar, saluting a bouquet of flowers. I struggled to pull my camera from my bag before he finished, but was only able to snap off one shot before he spun on his heel and marched away.

His dedication to his fellow soldier, and the bitter irony of the dead Marine’s story made me appreciate my life that much more.