Bear with me on this: What if we can't find aliens because they are religious?

[TlalocW]

3. I remember reading a short story in high school

It followed the daily exploits of a young girl as she was preparing to go to an event welcoming aliens from another planet who were landing for the first time. She was super excited, had always loved thinking about traveling to the stars, was wanting her parents to rush things along, upset at her friend who wasn't as excited as she was, etc. They eventually get there, and the aliens' ships land, and they come out and use a device to test the atmosphere to see if it's breathable. As she describes them and the suits they're wearing and taking off (because the atmosphere is safe), you slowly realize that aliens are humans from Earth, and we've been reading about another world's being's day.

It may be us that makes the first step.

TlalocW