on the hudson river, people take selfies and groupies against the fading bright layers of sunset
a muscled black man in combat gray t-shirt, jeans, leather boots, and earbuds sits down on a bench facing the river, singing in falsetto
I do a double-take as I run by
a french-speaking family of 7 or 8 spans the entire walkway
I pause a beat for a gap and slip through
a police boat flashes blue and red lights on the jersey shore
down river, lady liberty shines pale green across the water
I do an extra leg along the river, strong and free
I can run forever and don’t want to ever stop
but friends and dinner at EN japanese are on the menu, so I cross west street at eleventh when the white walker beckons
a young man in a black suit, white shirt, sits on a stool at the corner of perry and bleecker, playing mournful cello
he smiles when I run by
four twenty-somethings dressed holiday festive fill the sidewalk, one of the women carrying pink lilies, on their way to a dinner party
I swerve into the street to pass
I bet a lot of people live in sixth floor walk-ups
don’t you think some people own the top two floors?
no way!
on the next corner, a giant black SUV idles at the curb
a diminutive black man holds open the door for a very large black man
I wonder if he’s a famous rapper
I smile at the driver in complicity about the glory of being near this man
he doesn’t get it
at seventh ave and greenwich the light is with me but sirens are coming my way, a block uptown
I dash across flying on endorphins and more glory
jayrunning across greenwich, two guys on bikes run the light at charles and I slow and change my angle to let them pass in front of me
we rule the night
kids
coins jingling in his paper cup, the grizzled black man who sits on an over-turned bucket next to the magazine stand at sixth avenue and west ninth street sings
and heaven and nature sing
and heaven and nature sing
and hea-ven and he-e-ven and nature sing
the sirens rise
Yesterday was the first day of spring, and it snowed in New York. I went for a run as glorious flakes skirled and floated through the air, stage-lit by the lights along the Hudson River walk. It’s a nice hour-long run from my place in the village along the Hudson to the Financial District Ferry Terminal and back.
I passed tennis players on my way to the ferry terminal, enjoying the gentle snowfall, and caught a glimpse of One World, nestled between the legs of two other high rises.
New Yorkers still call this the World Trade Center.
On the way back, I could see the Empire State Building in the distance, over 70 blocks away (the lit tower in the center of the photo). I love seeing these two landmarks as I go about the city. They are orientation touchstones, helping people find their way, much like a striking tree or cliff formation would have guided our ancestors.