NYC: Through the Parks

A couple years ago, I had a layover in JFK airport. I remember flying over NYC and watching as Central Park unfurled below me. It hurt to not be able to leave the airport and explore the city ... so as I caught the next plane and left the skyline behind, me I promised NYC that one day I'd be back.

And on a cloudy, damp January day, we stopped in Hell's Kitchen to pick up coffee for our walk. The small Turkish cafe was filled with dark-clad women ordering their vanilla lattes to go and men quietly working at their laptops. Once I had coffee in one hand, his hand in the other, we meandered through the streets, knowing we were closer as the volume of people began to increase. We turned a corner and horse-drawn carriages began trotting past us, bicycles were too many to count, and the sounds of little munchkins could be heard on the granite slide. We had found Central Park.

Walking through the park entrance, I couldn't decide which direction I wanted to go first. Given the countless hours I've spent watching Person of Interest on late Saturday nights with Dad, I had a bucket list of little nooks and crannies I wanted to find ... it was a continual deja-vu moment as we walked through familiar scenes and stopped to people watch. My conversation skills were practically non-existent ... there was so much to watch and take in. After a few hours of walking about, we found a park bench and watched a Saturday morning in Central Park take place.

A few short mornings later, we played the scene all over again but this time in Bryant Park. That morning was windy and cold ... our walk through the park resembled more of a quick march than a leisurely stroll! We briskly walked through the park, stopped to watch the ice-skaters braving the cold, and then ran for cover and something piping hot!

New York City

"The City seen from the Queensboro Bridge is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and beauty in the world."

(F. Scott Fitzgerald)

My first glimpse of NYC may not have been from the Queensboro Bridge,  but it held all the magic of stepping off a train, and walking into Grand Central Station for the very first time. We arrived just as everyone was getting off work on a Friday evening, so we hoisted our bags and pushed our way through the streets. The lights were beginning to come on all around us, and those first few blocks of walking were spent craning my neck to look up, attempting to not knock someone over with my backpack, and trying not to lose him. We were staying with friends, and so had to walk through Midtown to get to our destination. It was one of the most distracting walks I've done in awhile ... behind every corner was a scene that was familiar and yet so unfamiliar ... finally seeing a place that you've only read about, and seen secondhand? Pure magic.

But of course ...  magic tinged with reality! After about 45 minutes we crashed into Starbucks for a quick caffeine jolt, a  minute to put our bags town, and a chance to get our bearings. Tired, hungry and a little overwhelmed, it is amazing what a cup of a coffee can do! Refresehd and ready to go, we hoisted our bags once more and set off for a long weekend exploring the city that never sleeps ...

January

January was settling in for long winter days, pulling out the coziest blankets, and lighting candles in the evening. Trips for lumber and watching as 2x4's became end tables, complete with little imperfections that made it real. Learning patience as that same lumber needed continual sanding, elbow grease and working with the grain, not against it. It was the extra scarf and finally buying a pair of $3 gloves. Trips upstate for new traditions and Christmas tree bonfires. Grocery runs and learning how to stock a freezer ...

It was seeing New York City for the first time. Walking through Grand Central Station, stopping just to feel the movement and swell of hundreds of people rushing by you. Finding a tiny coffee shop tucked next to the dry cleaners. Catching your breath as you realize you just walked past the Empire State Building. It was warm pretzels from street vendors and miles and miles of walking. Crossing the Brooklyn Bridge and stopping to watch the sun set behind the Statue of Liberty. It was being cold and cranky, and being held tight in a hug. The lights of the city skyline coming on bit by bit ... 

It was waiting in eager anticipation at the airport, attempting to spot your five foot three inches mama amongst the passengers. Holding her tight and trying to stop the tears. Saturdays spent over mugs of coffee and after dinner games. Introducing her to Sunday traditions and Italian pastries. Cuddling up in the evenings, not wanting to close our eyes on another day. Watching a mother's love transform an apartment into a home. Mishaps and trips to the emergency room. The kindness of loved ones and nursing staff. Chocolate ice-cream and trying to slow down time. Tears and tight hugs and 'I'll see you soon's ...

It was counting it all joy.

December

Little pieces of December that I'm tucking into my heart and bringing into the new year:
driving though upstate New York to find a Christmas tree farm, taking three tries to get the lights just right, carefully setting up the manger scene and hiding away Baby Jesus until Christmas, moments of silence by that same manger scene - attempting to make space for His coming, the crowded baking aisles in the grocery store, early Saturday morning Advent retreats with a hundred little old Church ladies who needed their coffee, hosting dinners and taking two hours to create new recipes, flour and icing and dozen of Christmas cookies, co-workers telling me that they could tell I had adjusted because I lost the 'deer in the headlights' look, hiking through frozen state parks, wrapping up gifts and taking them through airport security, stepping off the plane to be greeted by a nephew racing in for a hug, waking up to coffee in my mama's kitchen, staying awake for Christmas Eve Mass, a house filled to the brim with family members, taking three hours to open gifts because no one could stop laughing, falling asleep under fuzzy blankets, loved ones wrapped close, seeing the old year out, and toasting in the new ...

Mitch and Chelsea [Engagement]

In the midst of packing and preparing for the cross-country trek, I was so happy to have been able to do this sweet couple's engagement session. He's over six feet tall, while she barely makes it past five: the way he wraps her close in his arms is enough to melt your heart into a little puddle on the floor. They started the session out nervous and a little unsure, and by the end of it, they couldn't keep a straight face because they were making each other laugh so much. I count myself blessed that I was able to capture a little of their joy!