243/365

Bound No'th Blues
Goin' down de road, Lord,
Goin' down de road.
Down de road, Lord,
Way, way down de road.
Got to find somebody
To help me carry this load.
Road's in front o' me,
Nothin' to do but walk.
Road's in front o' me,
Walk... and walk... and walk.
I'd like to meet a good friend
To come along an' talk.
Road, road, road, O!
Road, road... road... road, road!
Road, road, road, O!
On de No'thern road.
These Mississippi towns ain't
Fit for a hoppin' toad.
- Langston Hughes

(artwork from Jacob Lawrence's Migration Series, #40 The Immigrants Arrived in Great Number, One Way Ticket at MOMA)

So much of this artwork reminded me of where I live...

242/365

"No day shall erase you from the memory of time."
- Virgil, Book IX of The Aeneid

"This quotation from Book IX of The Aeneid by the Roman poet Virgil suggest the transformative potential of remembrance. The same idea is expressed in each of the letters which have been forged from pieces of recovered World Trade Center steel by New Mexico artist Tom Joyce (American, b. 1956)

Originally trained as a blacksmith, Joyce was invited to harness the transformative process that occurs when iron is touched by fire. He took wounded, remnant steel- made of iron and carbon- and forged it, by heating and folding, into letters of hope and beauty. The result reminds us that Virgil's words are not just a statement, they are a promise."

(at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, New York City, NY)

December Photo Project- 9

Why does a Costa Rican rental house have a Statue of Liberty in the window?

New York

We are finishing an amazing month in New York City.  A month that seemingly passed by in the blink of an eye.  What an incredible experience to be able to live in the city for a month, to meet people and make friends and be a few threads in the complex tapestry God has woven in New York.

We were tourists.  We made it to the museums and the big name stores and the sights that you think of when you think of New York.  We were commuters.  We traveled by subway every single day.  We negotiated the labyrinth of mazes underneath the city.  We pushed our way through the crush of people at rush hour, morning and night.  We rode on buses and ferries, too.  And we were residents.  We bought our groceries a couple days at time and carried them down the street and up the stairs to our place.  We read the paper on the subway every morning.  We passed by the same people each evening.

Perhaps I am most surprised by the diversity of New York.  I can't imagine that in this month we haven't seen every shade of skin tone and heard a good many of the tongues of earth.  Living in New York provides an amazing photograph of God's kingdom.  We witnessed the ugliness of racism and heard occasional examples of how vile the untamed tongue can sound.  And yet, we saw acts of kindness and compassion.  We saw the beauty amidst brokenness.

New York is dirty and busy and loud.  We'll never forget the stench of garbage sitting on the curb on a hot day, or the surprise of seeing a rat on the subway tracks.  But New York is a beautiful tapestry of color and sound and life as well.  We tasted the cuisines of the world.  We marveled at the wonder of modern architecture.  And we smiled while watching the delight of children that is universal.

And this month has been a good transition to what lies ahead for my family.  We're leaving the relative predictability of the midwest and heading into a life that looks and sounds and tastes much different than the one we are most familiar with.  In this month, we have seen God's provision, and we rest in His faithfulness to continue to care for us in the new and different places He has yet to bring us to.

A friend and fellow participant created a video of her images of the month for her final project.  I think it's a really neat glimpse of much of what we experienced as well.  (and hey!  I'm in it, for a brief moment you can catch my eyes...)

Good bye New York!  Thanks for a great month of memories and experiences!

91 days of summer- 39

Grand Central Terminal,
New York, NY

Tourist day 2-

We were out of the house and headed towards the subway at 6:45 AM!! We had to take the local 1 all the way to the end of the line at South Ferry, about, oh, 26 stops or something ridiculous like that.  But it turns out that choosing the first ferry to Liberty Island is among the best decisions I've made while in New York.  We beat the crowds through security.  We beat the crowds to the pedestal.  We never felt rushed. And when we were tired and ready to go home, we went home.  (and then I took an hour long nap!)

The Statue of Liberty ranks VERY high on my list of Favorite National Parks.  Perhaps right under Mt. Rushmore and Muir Woods.  K bought a National Park lunchbox as a souvenir.  Her mother's daughter.  Great choice!

I had never been to Ellis Island.  Very neat.  We saw the movie and the National Park Ranger who did the introduction was fantastic.  Ok, by his own admission he was "on a caffeine high," and maybe that explains why he really did bounce up and down while talking about immigration.  But I was right there with him.  This is our history! 

It was a good day.

Playing tourist

We played tourist in New York City today, and the collage shows scenes from the day.

We started at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  WOW!  What a fantastic collection.  We could easily spend days there.  We just barely scratched the surface of all it has to offer.  We saw some magnificent Egyptian art and enjoyed a good part of the American art gallery.  We gazed on Asian treasures, and enjoyed the special exhibit "American Woman" on US fashion. 

We then caught a subway south and exited at Times Square.  We ate at Bubba Gumps for a late lunch, and were pleasantly surprised.  We were seated immediately, enjoyed great service, had a view overlooking the busyness of Times Square, and it was fairly reasonably priced, besides.

Once at Times Square, we made stops for everyone to see the Ferris wheel at ToysRUs.  Leaving ToysRUs, we caught the NY icon, that barely-dressed-singing-cowboy.  Whoa, cowboy!  We also stopped at M&M World, before heading back to 5th Avenue.

5th Avenue held something for everyone.  All the bling and sparkle of Tiffany's for the girls.  Life size replicas of basketball playing giants for the boy at the NBA Store.  And the virtually mecca of the Apple Store for the man. 

Enough for a day of playing tourist!
Well... maybe one more tomorrow...

ewww...

We just missed the train.  We heard it go by overhead just as we were walking up the stairs.  No problem.  Another will come soon. 

We wait deep below the ground.  We rode three long escalators to get to this depth.  No one else waits, except the attendant far down at the end of the platform.  In a rare New York City moment, it is quiet, and we are alone.

Except...
What is that constant pitter-patter?
What is that squeaking?
It takes only a moment to realize...
RATS!

The next eight minutes move interminably slow.  We turn the i-pod music on as loud as it will go.  We hope we do not live out the scene from Ratatouille, when the ceiling collapses, or some Indiana Jones live infestation. 

Never have we been so glad to hear, and then see, the D train arriving!
Goodbye 63rd/Lexington!!

first impressions

First days in New York-

New York City is loud.
Traffic noises.
Engines and tires and horns.
People noises.
Talking and yelling and laughing.

Music noises.
Blues in the subway.
Drum and guitar on the stoop.
Latino radios playing
New York is vibrant.
Colors in signs.
Colors in dress.
Always in motion.
Ever active, never rests.

New York is diverse.
Different people and race and tongues.
The entire continuum of melanin.
Sizes and shapes.

There is the lady on the corner, who only speaks Spanish and sells tamales for a dollar.
There is the man in the subway, dancing to the beat of his own i-pod, smoothing his pants. (is he meeting a girl?)
There are the monks across the street, in grey robes that dust the ground, playing music on their front steps.
There are the strangers, gathered around a tv at a hot dog stand, shouting when their team scores a goal.

And there is a family of 7, figuring out how to get around.

(photo- the view from our bedroom, looking west down our street)