Photography - Everywhere I go

Groggily, I opened my eyes. It was 545 in the morning. I had finally been asleep, but, the world was not ready to let me enjoy it for long. Sirens blared outside the window. Fumbling for my glasses, I got up, and went looking for my camera. There were four fire trucks driving past on the street outside. That was enough to let the shutter loose, and I took about 15 photos before the trucks were gone. Its a different matter that, being in such a somnolent state, only one picture was worth looking at later.
Narrating this incident to a friend later, I was asked a very simple, yet rather profound question.

"Why does everything you see need to have a photo go with it? Why can't you just let things go by and relish the moment?"

The question really hit home. Photography had become almost second nature to me. It was so much a part of me, that there were now types of pictures that defined me. This doesn't answer the question, however. What was it that drew me to my third eye, an eye which can be changed at will, depending on the need? It had reached a point where just calling it a hobby may not be enough. Just yesterday I woke up at 445 in the morning, to get to the coast to capture the total lunar eclipse over the Golden Gate Bridge.

No, there had to be something more. Lately, I chased pictures with a passion that I rarely felt for anything else anymore. There is some sort of thrill involved in being in the same place and time as so many other people, but just seeing things differently from everyone else. But thats not all it is. Like everything I had evolved in my photography. Now, I am the only person around. I seek out new places, lonely as they may be, just so I can see what treasures lay hidden around me. Once done, I dont lock myself away either. I relish sharing them. There is quite a sense of satisfaction in that. Sharing knows no bounds - friends and then strangers. And, every picture has a story to go with it. After all, we are visual beings; it helps to have art to describe a story.

…[pictures are] a poor excuse, I know. But it helps me remember... I need to remember... Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world, I feel like I can't take it, and my heart is just going to cave in.