There is a place in the middle of New York City that makes me feel as if there are no limits. To the left is the Plaza Hotel, to the right Central Park. Standing there, with one foot in a concrete jungle and one in lush green foliage, I know that I am capable. Standing there, I know that nothing can hold me back.
Manhattan is breathtaking. Not in the natural way of the countryside, or in the majestic beauty of the mountains, but in the realization that this city is filled with 1.6 million unique people living independently all while sharing the same 33.7 square miles. Manhattan is also crowded. Walking down the street it is not uncommon to hear 5 different languages spoken in a single block. The diversity accepted in the city is inspirational. People of all nationalities are not only welcomed, but also celebrated. Most importantly to me though, Manhattan is a door.
Stepping off of the plane in LaGuardia international airport was overwhelming. The people, the traffic, the prices… everything in New York City is more. When I got the chance to visit my sister while she was interning for the summer I was overjoyed. I was excited to see my sister and I couldn’t wait to visit the dreamy city that she was so in love with.
When I finally saw her, I quickly realized that this girl was not the same one who had left us earlier that summer. Though it had only been a few months, she had changed drastically. New York looked good on her. She was dressed in new clothes, with a new haircut and a new sense of confidence. She almost glowed. I couldn’t help but wonder what had influenced her so greatly.
As my family stood greeting one another, I took a step back to watch the people around me. This “glowing” confidence wasn’t something unique to her. At a glance, it seemed most of the people in New York had it. One woman strutted by in tight black dress and heels chatting on the phone about dinner plans; a man cursed as he spilt coffee on his charcoal suit. I noticed a kid that looked about eight years old putting on a show, surrounded by a small crowd of people, none of which were his parents. These people, all strangers, astonished me. They seemed so determined, so driven. It was as if they knew their purpose in life and were each determined to succeed no matter the cost.
My family quickly finished their greetings and we headed back to the hotel to change for supper. I talked to my sister on the way, eager to hear of her New York adventures. I laughed as she told me of her northern roommate who thought we still owned slaves in the South, and I got jealous when she showed me pictures of the mini concert her work had hosted earlier that week. She was living out her dream. Hearing about all her opportunities made me even more excited to explore. I had a list of things that I couldn’t wait to see and do.
The first day we headed up 5th Avenue. Every girl dreams of walking down that street, surrounded by some of the most well known names in fashion. Another day, we scored some great deals in Chinatown. My favorite meal was supper one night in Little Italy. The atmosphere was so authentic and the people were so sincere. We toured the Metropolitan Museum of Art and I got to experience Broadway for the very first time. That week, I visited some of the places I’d only ever seen in movies.
The underground Apple Store was pristine, and next door, F.A.O. Schwarz perfectly captured childhood. I was amazed that something so new and technological stood next to one of the oldest toy stores in the United States. Somehow, the contrasting stores seemed to go perfectly side-by-side. This really was the way the whole island of Manhattan functioned: The new next to the old, the simple by the ornate, and the concrete next to the nature. That was my favorite part, really. Not the sites we saw, or the stores we visited, but the way everything seemed to have a place, and it all worked together so beautifully.
New York is a lovely place to visit. Going there, I had plenty of expectations of what it would be like and what I would experience while there. It met those expectations, soared above them, actually. But, it wasn’t the sites or stores in New York that I fell in love with. They didn’t magically make everyone that lived there confident. It is so much more than that. New York City is a place where everything fits. Everyone in New York belongs somehow.
New York doesn’t just create opportunity. It is opportunity. Visiting the city opened my eyes to diversity. I saw that people who are so different could not only exist, but also thrive together. Before my trip, I was never really aware that there was more to life than what my small town offered. New York showed me that the world is so much bigger than small town, USA. It was there that I realized that I belonged. Not necessarily in New York or even back home, but somewhere. I know that one day, I’ll find my place.
