Musings from the top of the Empire State Building, Floor 102
A lot of times in life things seem to move so fast that we
can barely catch our breath and find the energy to keep up.
The incessant vibrancy and energy that the city gives off is
impossible to ignore. The city breathes circles around us,
making us feel powerless and insignificant when compared to
the skyscrapers and brilliant billboard lights.
It makes us feel like we aren’t doing enough, when there
is so much movement buzzing around us, speeding ahead of us.
But the funny thing is, that in all this time, when we know
that the city is alive, and moving, and breathing, and
creating serendipitous miracles to happen all over at any
given time, we never paused to realize that we missed
something.
The city has a heart. So big that it makes the lights
twinkle all throughout the day and night, shine on the
reflection of the Hudson and on the raindrops on the ledge of
the Highline in Chelsea. And this heart is so intertwined in
itself, so connected through systems and powers that we cannot
understand, that we cannot even spot it from 102 stories above
at the top of the Empire State Building. Contrary to popular
tourist opinion, the heart of the city is not Times Square.
The heart is found in the giggles of children and business
people alike in Washington Square Park, popping giant bubbles
under the arch in front of the fountain. The heart is on the
steps of the Met, where so many footprints pass through everyday.
The heart is in the couple that is buying their first New York
City apartment together, making it together, starting a real life
together. The heart is in the awestruck eyes of a girl who is
frightened, because she has realized that the pure love and
excitement that she feels for the city is stronger than anything
she’s felt for a man. The heart is in all of us. We cannot see the
heart because we carry it. Because it is due to what is within us
that we have such an amazing city to live in.
And it is humbling to see the beauty of the city from above.
To remove oneself from the world in which we are nothing but
selfish and self-concerned. To step back for a moment and realize
that the place from which we have come, to which we belong, likes
to dance. And to move. And to breathe. And to live. As do we. And
in an instant the city, something that was once so concrete, just
a place where we walked and dwelled and stared at the beauty,
became something greater. And though I carry a piece of the heart
of the city, I know that I am also in love with it too. Now the city
is a part of me and I’ve vowed to remain a part of it. And no matter
how crowded or traffic-filled or loud, I embrace it. Because the
dance of the city is one that cannot be duplicated or choreographed
or mimicked by another. The city is the most unique place I’ve ever
been, thing I’ve ever met.
And one day I might meet a guy who embodies this same fabulous
quality—who brings something different all the time, spontaneous
and serendipitous, keeps me happy even on a rainy day, makea me
feel special without getting jealous, gives me hope as I look up
at him, as I do the buildings, that although I’m so small and the
world is much bigger, that I am still so close to the center, to
the heart, that I will make a difference in it. That the
insignificant footprints I am leaving will matter to someone, will
help someone. And this hope always draws me right in. Into the
heart that’s forever inside me, next to my own, becoming one. It’s
an honor to be here, in the presence of such greatness. I can only
have hope that I too have the power to be the next great thing.
stay classy! xx
