You know, to be completely honest, when I imagined myself becoming a New Yorker, I imagined I'd be a waitress/dog-walker making ends meet while I composed "The Great American Novel." Not to bash what I am doing now, which is, "oh, helping students at an underserved school have more meaningful classroom experiences and gain real-world, 21st-century skills by creating opportunities for them to provide service meeting real needs in their community that line up with curricular goals." It's not like I am a sell-out or anything, but I think I've fallen into another rut.
That guy Rumi that everyone seems to like once wrote, "Let the beauty you love be what you do; there are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the ground." Of course, doing a year of volunteer service for a youth-based nonprofit is noble, but it is not the only way to live a meaningful life. I always liked that Rumi excerpt because I took it to mean that if I followed a true passion, I would make the world a better place--even if my passion wasn't deworming orphans.
Anyway, I planned to ponder all of this at sunset on the Brooklyn Bridge. Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge always reminds me of why I want to live in New York. From where it spans the water, you can see ever-glowing lights of the financial district, and the Chrysler and Empire State Buildings in the distance. You can also hear a whole plethora of languages and the chiming of bicycle bells as cyclists warn tourists to get out of their lane. Somehow all of this convinces me of the infinite possibilities of New York City. That someone gets to work in the top floors of those glamorous buildings. That this very night, dreams are probably coming true for someone.
Here are some photos of things that I found lovely on the bridge. To be honest, I sort of found everything so lovely that I actually forgot to have my existential crisis while I was there.
No comments:
Post a Comment