Beautiful!

 My birthday was a few weeks ago.  I am now 57 years old.

I'm creeping closer and closer to 60.

(Why is it that when the "tens" digit changes it seems like something major?)

My 57th year was a really good one - exceptional, in fact.

The past few years since the kids have not been living at home 

have been a transition.  I've been learning what else brings me happiness

and makes me feel fulfilled.  I thought that would be a photography business,

but discovered I was wrong.  After so many busy years of raising my kids,

I didn't need (or want) to fill my days keeping schedules and sitting in front 

of a computer.

I'm also not willing to fall into the trap of letting my life get smaller as I get older.

Instead, this is the time to seize as much life and joy and adventure 

and learning and novelty as I possibly can.

 I can enjoy my kids as the adults that they are AND have a life separate from them too.

My husband and I have evolved over the past few years too.

We have found things we enjoy doing together that will keep

us active.   We do many things with our children and look forward

to our time with them, but we also enjoy our time without them.

My husband's birthday gift to me this year was a trip to NYC to see a Broadway show.

We went to the city a day early because he had business meetings.

So I had almost two days to explore on my own!

I told Adam where I wanted to go and he assisted me with the logistics

of how to get there.  Armed with my list of trains to take and places I wanted

to go,  I set off alone on a beautiful New York day!  

First on the list was the High Line.

The High Line is a 1.45-mile-long  linear park built in Manhattan 

on an elevated section of an old railway line.  (Can I never escape

nude sunbathers???)

After visiting Chelsea Markets,  I took the subway to Union Square.

While browsing at the Strand Bookstore, these made me laugh.

I had a late lunch at the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park.

I highly recommend the Chicken Shack - and the lemonade!

Madison Square Park is right across from the Flatiron Building,

which I've always wanted to see.  Beautiful! Shopping was also very

good in this area.

Next stop - the new transportation hub near the World Trade Center.

It was beautiful from the outside.  It looks like the giant wings

of a graceful bird.

However, on the inside, it was breathtaking in its simplicity.

The shiny white marble floor reminded me of a skating rink.

It is called the "Oculus", and it does feel just like an eye open to the world.

I saved the Brooklyn Bridge for the evening.  I've never been on it

before, and I wanted to walk across it at night so I could

see the lights of Manhattan on the way back.

It is a 1.3 mile walk to cross the bridge in one direction.

Being a suspension bridge, there are many cables heading skyward.

The stone towers and wooden walkway made me
feel like I was back in time to another era.

Unfortunately,  I didn't get the sunset I was hoping for.  Before I made it

to the Brooklyn side,  I looked back and saw clouds enveloping one of the 

World Trade Center towers.

The walkway split into two paths in Brooklyn.  One to "downtown Brooklyn" 

and one to "DUMBO".   I had never heard of "DUMBO" but it sounded

fun and most of the people were going that way, so I followed.

I discovered that "DUMBO"  stands for

"Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass".

It's a beautiful area with shops, restaurants, and cobblestone streets

on the waterfront under the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges.  

There is also a park with great views of the Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge.  I could just picture it with a sunset in the background!

Before heading back,  I grabbed a slice of pizza and walked in the

dark to the stairs taking me back up to the bridge.  There were plenty

of people around still.

It was beautiful!

There was a glow over the city through the mist and the clouds.  

It had begun to rain lightly.

When I got back to the Manhattan side,  I asked Siri to help me

find my way to our hotel in the South Street Seaport area.

She didn't let me down.

I still had most of the next day to explore on my own.  I got up early, but

I was disappointed to find out that most of the stores didn't open until 11AM! 

I headed to SOHO and sat in a coffee shop to pass some time.

The store I really wanted to visit didn't open until noon!  I had read about

it on Tripadvisor and didn't want to leave the city until I got there.

It is called Purl.

I fell in love with it the moment I entered the door!

Not only was it visually beautiful, but they had gorgeous yarns that I

had never seen (or felt) before!  So incredibly soft!  In addition to the yarns

was beautiful fabrics and felt.  What I loved most were the examples of

beautiful things made out of those incredible soft yarns and fabrics!

I bought 10 skeins of Blue Sky Organic Cotton yarn to make a throw

for my couch.  I can't wait to get started.

Almost as good as actually visiting their store is visiting their website.

www.purlsoho.com

Not only can you buy everything online, but you can browse for hours

in the "CREATE" section with beautiful pictures of beautiful things

along with free instructions on how to make them! 

To top off my time in the city,  Adam met my husband and I

for dinner before we all went to see "Beautiful" The Carol King Musical.

It was amazing!  We loved every minute of it!

The final song in the show was "Beautiful".  I remember it like 

yesterday from my teen years.

You've got to get up every morning with a smile on your face
And show the world all the love in your heart
Then people gonna treat you better
You're gonna find, yes, you will
That you're beautiful as you feel

I think the key to this next phase of my life is to face each

day, open to all of its possibilities, with a smile and

appreciation for all of the beauty around me.  I hope to never

lose my curiosity for the world around me.  Old age will

continue to creep up on me, and there is no way to prevent that.

But I hope to always feel young and beautiful on the inside!

"Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old." ~ Franz Kafka