On Good Friday

@mbhohio.org

The sun is shining brightly today.

Warmth is enveloping the air, reminding us that spring is finally here.

The tulips in our front yard have emerged triumphantly from their frozen winter prison and their brilliant yellow color enlivens our home.

There is, at least for me, a sense of hopefulness in the air. That's not been easy for me to recognize, if I'm honest. Look no further than my Twitter feed and you'll know that it's not been a walk in the park to find all things hopeful of late.

Today, though, I woke up with a sense of hope and I've pondered a bit as to the reasons why. My wife, the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML, and I are enjoying this "empty nest" phase of our life. As we reshape ourselves in this new chapter of our lives, it's been a lot of fun to progress together. Our children are in good, good places. The Awesomes have given us two of the greatest grandchildren on the planet and our lives are better for it. CAL is challenging herself in her career and is enjoying her Spring Break on the East Coast right now. The RM is, at heart, still The Boy and we wouldn't have it any other way. So I look around at my life and there is reason to be hopeful, even if our world is beginning to look like it may become the dystopian world we saw in "The Hunger Games" (#thanksforthatFuhrerTrump). Even in the dark, violent world she created, author Suzanne Collins wrote this about hope:

Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.

Hope consoles us. Hope strengthen us. Hope guides us. Hope can be found in the most difficult of circumstances. Difficult circumstances abounded nearly two millennia ago when the Son of God was crucified. Today, Good Friday, is the day that the Christian world remembers that day. It's a day of enormous import in Christendom, as the events of that day initiated a hope of redemption that burns brightly to this day.

I am grateful for this day and for He who, as I believe, died on this day. I am grateful that there is still a measure of good in this world. I am grateful for hope.

Alone in a crowd

Lonely? Maybe not.

Due to myriad meetings, I spent more than my usual scheduled "in office" days in my Manhattan office this week. Although we were blessed with a very mild winter, all things considered, the city is emerging into a beautiful spring. In a cacophonous city crafted in cement, steel, and the detritus of its millions upon millions of residents, how does spring manifest itself? Here's how:

Stunningly blue skies.
White clouds that create their own art work against that amazing blue palette.
Bright yellow daffodils arching towards the sun in planters all along Lex.
And shwarma truck vendors who are not yet permanently enraged at their customers.

Manhattan in the spring is a joy (really, it is). I find an enormous sense of solace at this time of year when I'm in the city. The city is finding itself once again. Even though New York City never feels empty, there are more people out and about. People who have hibernated (or ordered in from Seamless) for the winter are out and about. That's obvious by the longer lines at every place I like to go for lunch.

What is remarkable to me is that I can be standing in a massive throng, like at the corner of 42nd and Madison during the rush to get to Grand Central Station, and feel completely alone, and at peace I might add, in my thoughts. I have come to realize that's not a bad thing. It's in moments like that I feel like I'm totally engaged and in the moment. I find myself doing some of my best thinking surrounded by those hordes. I've wondered why that is too. Perhaps it's the awareness that not a soul around you knows who you are; so there's no judgement. To the person who happens to be walking along side you on that packed street, you're just someone doing what needs to be done at that moment. It's a liberating feeling.

Enlightenment is being alone in a crowd;

a feeling of oneness in a crowd - 

this is a sign of wisdom.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

I hardly consider myself enlightened or full of wisdom but I get what Shankar is saying. Being alone in a crowd is not necessarily a bad thing. Being alone in a crowded New York City on a spring day can be a thing of beauty.