Source: http://www.batteryparkcity.org/ How do I say goodbye? While I know it is not a final goodbye and I'll be back to visit, I am saying goodbye to my life as a New Yorker.
When I first landed in New York seven and a half years ago I could not have imagined the life I have come to love here. It was February 2002 and Mister T and I were driving up Central Park West to corporate housing, our temporary home for the first three months. In the darkness of the night the city felt foreboding and strange. I woke up in the middle of that first night sick to my stomach from nerves.
Over these past seven years Mister T and I married, bought our first home and had our daughter Miss L. In ways I feel like I have lived here my entire life. It is the most connected I have felt to a place in my adult life. In other ways I feel like the time has gone by so quickly, especially in these last days when I am holding on to every second, every view, every familiar scent and noise.
Sure I've had those New York moments where the city won and I lost. I've been spit on (randomly by a saliva-spewing midtown worker while I walked by Bryant Park on my way home from work), had a crazed homeless person hit a water bottle above my head for an entire subway ride (I wasn't sure what would happen if I tried to move), narrowly escaped being an innocent victim of a fist brawl that erupted between two men on the 7 train on my way to the US Open, been in a taxi on my way to the airport when it hit another car, and held on desperately to shut a taxi door in the rain when someone else on the street thought they should have the cab and I should get out.
But isn't that what makes us proud to be New Yorkers? We can survive anything. We are hearty and committed to our life here. And along with the struggle comes the huge rewards. The biggest reward for me has been the amazing friends I have come to know here. My friends are what have made my life here so vibrant.
I never imagined I would bond so closely with the mothers I met when Miss L was first born. I remember arriving at my first playgroup in Tribeca when Miss L was just six weeks old and feeling so frantic that I actually was able to get out of the house and up to Tribeca without a catastrophe. And it wasn't until I actually got there that I realized I had to sit in a circle with complete strangers. I felt nervous and a little intimidated. Would they like me? Would they think I was a good mother and a nice person? Would I fit in?
After a few warm smiles and a little conversing I realized that everyone was in the same boat. I started to attend playgroup every week, looking forward to seeing their familiar faces and relating to the newest findings and obstacles to motherhood. Last summer is my fondest memory of my time in New York, spending warm afternoons spread out on blankets with our little babies in Wagner Park.
In less than two years I feel like these mothers are my dearest friends, the same way you would feel about a childhood friend. In a short amount of time, I feel like we have become connected for life. I feel so lucky to have them in my life. Their children mean the world to me.
I'm not so sad about saying goodbye, because I know I will see my friends again. We'll come back to visit, and hopefully we will have a few visitors in San Francisco. What makes me sad is that I am going to miss seeing them often. I like seeing them three or four times a week. I have enjoyed the impromptu get-togethers of living in close proximity. I have been grateful for the support in trying times and with life's challenges. These amazing mothers would drop anything to lend a helpful hand or to simply lend an ear to listen.
I've been so blessed to have Miss L, and the huge bonus is this group of amazing friends. I love dancing like a silly person for music time in Mama LS's playroom, discussing our latest book at book club (even if it is only for a few minutes while chasing our little ones around), being inspired to knit and write and be creative, and knowing that whenever I go out for a walk with Miss L I will see a friend out and have a chat or join them in the park.
When I leave on Friday I will no longer be a New Yorker. And we all know you can't make a claim on this city once you leave. I just hope I will still understand the jokes on 30 Rock and I don't start wearing my workout clothes all day long. I'm sure my mama friends will keep me in check.
How lucky am I to have so many wonderful New York friends to come back and visit!
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