New York, New York

What a wonderful town! New World Trade Center; panoramic views of lower Manhattan from Jersey City; reconnecting with Natalya,visiting her son Ivan; her beautiful beaded artwork, a loving gift; being with friends; at the Guggenheim. Then wonder of wonders, Natalya and Ivan came to visit us in Sylvania, Ohio (collage at bottom)! Life's an amazing adventure! 

My daughter Elissa and I had a great trip to New York City November 17-21, 2016, to see my dear friend Natalya, from Starobelsk, Ukraine, who was visiting her son Ivan, who works as an IT expert in NYC.  I lived with Natalya on Kyrova Street for the last six months of my PC service. So you can imagine what an exciting reunion it was! We toured and ate and reminisced.  Natalya gave me a beautiful beaded artwork she had created, a treasure of the heart.She now lives in Kyiv, closer to her grown children and grandchildren, away from the war zone of eastern Ukraine.

We stayed across the river from the gleaming World Trade Center in Jersey City, New Jersey. Easy to take a ferry to and from lower Manhattan, where we toured, explored, and reconnected with my traveling friend Christine Comerford, last seen in Sicily.

We also met with Elissa's friend Eric Blakney at the Guggenheim, a great Frank Lloyd Wright building. Eric was a schoolmate from her high school days at the Maumee Valley Country Day School. We had another great reunion with friend Alice Twombly from my days as a graduate student in Madison, Wisconsin. Oh the stories! We were hoping to see David Britsch, son of our dear friends Jim and Barbie Britsch and brother of pianist Marty, but he couldn't make it. Sadly, David died suddenly a few months later.  If only...

There is something special about being in NYC, a place David loved, a bustling spirit, a wonderful diversity. It embraces you, makes you feel alive and joyful.