Rainy Day Observations in New York City

We stepped out of our hotel and into the rain.

When you visit New York City and the weather is under the weather you don’t sit in the hotel room.

You do as my mother has told me: make your own sunshine.

We made our way to the other side of town and I watched the world around me.

As we crossed Park Avenue we passed a 4-year-old boy. One hand was in his mother’s and the other hand held an ice cream cone. He was laughing and skipping and stomping in his red rain boots. Then, just as we were passing, he jumped straight into a small puddle in the middle of the crosswalk.

As his feet hit the ground his ice cream left his hand and fell straight to the road.

“Mommmm! My iceeee creammmm.”

Tragic.

But we kept walking because you don’t stop while in the middle of the road.

Something I’ve learned about NYC is that it is very easy to be in the way of someone else.

You never want to be in the way of someone else.

And stopping in the middle of the crosswalk would make you in the way.

We navigated around the slow and were passed by those in a bigger hurry. 

Hurry is a competition in New York.

We walked by a couple FaceTiming their family as they strolled down the sidewalk. He had his arm around her and she had her arm around him. They took up a third of the sidewalk. By the looks of the people passing them they were in the way. 

I heard them announce to his parents that they were pregnant.

You could hear his parents scream and holler with excitement.

We turned and walked down the soaked stairs of the subway.

We made it just in time to see a woman’s brown paper bag rip at the bottom. Everything fell out. It was like something out of a Hallmark movie. I think in a few scenes she falls in love with a wealthy businessman who hates Christmas.

We sat down on the train and Sarah told me we had 9 stops until we would get to where we were going.

At the first stop a little girl in pink boots got on the train with her dad. They sat across from us and her feet swung with joy. She had glasses and a big smile and had no problem making her own sunshine. She smiled at me and my heart melted.

8 stops to go.

A mom and her young son entered the train with a box of candy and gum and snacks. He had on yellow rain boots. They were selling the candy to the riders. We made eye-contact and I said no thank you. The little girl asked her father where do you get that much candy? He leaned over and said, “Costco.”

7 stops to go.

The mom and her son left the train without making a sale. On came a man with his golf clubs. Maybe he knew of a place where there was sunshine.

6 stops to go.

5 people get off the train. 4 people get on the train. 0 dogs get on the train.

I have decided that there are not enough dogs in this city.

5 stops to go.

Almost everyone riding the train is looking at their phone except for me and the girl with the pink rain boots. I smile at her and she smiles back. My heart melts a little more.

4 stops to go.

A college aged couple gets on the train. They are holding hands and whispering in each other’s ear. Smiling and kissing and giggling. Both of them are wearing Jnco Jeans. Do you remember Jnco Jeans from the 90s? They are bulky and baggy and demand to be looked at. Well, they are back. I thought they had become extinct like dinosaurs, but here we are living in Jurassic Park.

3 stops to go.

I get out my phone and write down everything that’s above.

2 stops to go.

The little girl in the pink rain boots and I make eye contact again. She is cuddled close to her father, bouncing along with the train. She is comfortable and safe and looks at her dad and asks, “Can we go to Costco?”

1 stop to go.

The speaker clicks on and we hear, “Next stop: Museum of Natural History.”

The little girl's face lights up.

Mine does too.

I am still a little kid at heart.

“Daddy! This is the place from the movie Night at the Museum, right?”

He smiles.

I smile.

I had no idea.

She has forgotten about Costco. 

About the Author

Tanner Olson is an author, poet, speaker, and podcaster living in Nashville, Tennessee.

He is the author of I’m All Over the Place, As You Go, Walk A Little Slower, and Continue: Poems and Prayers of Hope.

You can find Tanner Olson’s books on Amazon.

His podcast is The Walk A Little Slower Podcast with Tanner Olson and can be found wherever you listen to podcasts.

Tanner Olson travels around the country sharing poetry, telling stories, and delivering messages of hope.

You can follow Tanner Olson on Instagram (@writtentospeak) and Facebook where you’ll daily find encouraging words of faith and hope.