Serendipity and the City

Rosa
Brooklyn, NY
leading lady

It’s easy to fall in love in New York. With such classics as “Breakfast At Tiffany’s” and “An Affair To Remember” immortalizing the romantic aura of this city, or with the contemporary favorites, “When Harry Met Sally” and “Sleepless In Seattle” giving hope to bereft souls that everything is possible in this droning metropolis, one would very well discover that nothing is really kept hidden in New York, not even true love.

Rosa always felt, too, that the one, true love was just somewhere out there, not too far from the city that’s been her only home ever since she was a child. Though she thought it did not have to be as fantastical as the way they happened in the movies, Rosa just believed that when it was the right moment, love would find her one day. Almost any single woman in New York has probably said the same thing, but what made it different with Rosa was that her one day really did come, only it took thirteen years after it all began once upon a time.

Now to majority of the population, thirteen years may seem like a fairytale gone bad (with that number, “ominous” sounds more like it), but this gym locker room attendant was not easily dissuaded. At some point, however, after countless failed relationships, a few missed connections, and a marriage breaking apart, Rosa declared late last year that she was going to take several steps back and instead of focusing too much on the search for “the one,” she was going to just enjoy what her single life had to offer for her and her 5 lovely children.

And just like that, at the exact moment when she made her declaration, the signature New York enchantment worked its magic on Rosa at last. It came to her in a way so mundane yet so unpredictable that this helpless romantic couldn’t help but chuckle at how her story unfolded. After all, if love finds you inside a crammed subway car as you bump casually with the cousin of your ex-boyfriend whom you met thirteen years ago when you were dating his closest relative, and have only seen sporadically the last decade or so, then that’s definitely one love story you won’t be hearing anywhere else other than this city of so-called happy beginnings.

So after reconnecting with the most unexpected person, Rosa decided to take a shot at love one more time. And soon enough, things just fell into place. From one surprise after another, she then found herself engaged, with the proposal taking place at no less than another “classic” New York establishment – the laundromat – Rosa finally realized that you can never dictate love’s timeline. “No matter how ready or experienced you think you may be, love has its own schedule that you have to respect because it works out better if you follow it that way. I mean, I waited 13 years! Thirteen years! And soon I got tired of waiting. And then BAM! There it was!” Rosa gushed.

Last Friday, June 27, New York offered Rosa the best surprise yet – an unforgettable, intimate marriage ceremony at the Brooklyn City Hall. And for the record, it was not spawned by the Sex And The City movie. The couple had planned it way ahead before the movie came out, only they just decided the day prior to their wedding to have it on that Friday. And if you think that was as New York as it could get, wait till you hear what the bride wore – a pair of jeans and a dressy, black top. Then it was off to work for Rosa right after the vows were exchanged, where the ecstatic bride shared to the rest of the hopeful, single women in the gym locker room that true love really is worth waiting for. But at least in New York, Rosa adds, you have so many interesting, varied things to enjoy while you’re biding the time.

Dream For An Insomniac

Tilly
Jamaica
free-spirited

For the longest time, Tilly thought that her bouts of sleeplessness had been something inherently chronic, a disorder she had acquired without being fully aware what it was exactly that had caused her to sleep for only 4 hours every night.

Yes, every night.

The answer finally came in a way Tilly never dreamt of: A couple of weeks ago, this daycare teaching assistant was at the beauty salon where her aunt worked as a hairdresser. As her aunt was busy prepping up one customer, Tilly sat around and joined the women for some beauty salon casual talk.

The women begun to talk about their families and communities, and Tilly relayed to the customer about how she had moved from Jamaica to New York at the tender age of 2 with her father. Her mother stayed behind, and Tilly’s last memory of her was that, as her mother bade her goodbye, she promised Tilly she would be following them shortly to New York.

The salon conversation deviated to more random things as the afternoon progressed. Suddenly, Tilly’s aunt, who has been taking care of her since she moved here to Brooklyn, blurted to her customer about how Tilly had been an insomniac over the years.

Without warning, the customer asked offhandedly that what if the reason for all this sleeplessness was that subconsciously, Tilly still awaited her mother’s arrival. It was then that the dam broke.

Tilly recalled that very first night she got to New York wherein she stayed up all night, an eager child awaiting her mom to walk in the door and tuck her to bed. The next night, it was the same. She stayed up into the wee hours of morning, waiting for her mother, until weariness finally made her close her eyes at dawn.

Sadly, Tilly’s mother never arrived to New York. She passed away eight years ago when Tilly was seventeen, and the reunion between mother and daughter never materialized since they last saw each other in Jamaica.

Tilly is truly grateful though to have finally uncovered the real reason behind her sleeping problem, no matter the pain brought about by the revelation. Ever the gracious person that she is, she was chipper when she remarked, “So after the customer said that, I cried and cried at the salon. But it was a good release. At least I know now that it was a lot more than just sleeplessness.”

So after discovering this, everyone around her hopes that Tilly will be able to sleep regularly now. She thinks it will still take awhile for her to do that. But the process to healing is always sidled with a promise that never remains unfulfilled, Tilly believes.

Driven

Martha
San Salvador, El Salvador
transporter

In New York, nothing could be more indispensable than three things relating to transportation: the subway, messenger bikes, and taxi cabs.

What one hardly finds though among these modes of transport is that not many females operate these vehicles. Could it be that females drive less faster than their males counterparts? Martha doesn’t believe so. After driving her own black, Lincoln cab for over three years, she has observed that women utility drivers are just as rapid on the wheels as the men, and a whole lot more cautious, too.

Martha became a cabbie three years ago when she had to fend for herself after the sudden loss of her husband whom she totally relied upon for over thirty years. A relative had suggested driving a cab as a potential livelihood, and the initially reluctant Martha agreed upon it after realizing that it was the one job which allowed her to be her own boss.

Starting out was very difficult for Martha though, not just because of the nature of the job but mostly because the male drivers stationed by the Brooklyn Mall were giving her a hard time. They were very aggressive and unaccommodating, a lot of times she would see her would-be passengers taken away from her by the other drivers who would cut in front of her lane. Several times she also found her regular waiting spot occupied by another driver who would completely ignore her pleas of letting her have her spot back.

The awful treatment she was getting from the men would have been enough to drive any driver to a state of road rage. Martha, however, refused to reciprocate the same hostile attitude to her fellow cabbies. She realized the only way to get in the game was to befriend these other cab drivers and really get to know them better. It took a while for her to get them to accept her, but slowly, one by one, they each warmed up to her and began to treat her like one of the guys. She even went as far as feeding them with her home-cooked delicacies, gaining her the respect she yearned, as well as the sheer admiration she totally deserved.

Soon enough, the cab drivers by the Brooklyn Mall became this close-knit family, and Martha, with whom the men fondly call, “Mami,” has learned to appreciate her job even more. Just like the rest of them, the skyrocketing gas price has greatly affected her daily operations, but at the end of the day, Martha feels thankful of her job as a cab driver.

“Driving is a very hard job,” Martha remarked. “But it’s also a good job because I get to talk to interesting people all the time, and I forget my problems and worries. And it’s also fun to share stories with my boys as to how their own travels went for the day. We each have funny stories to tell to one another all the time.”

Father’s Days

Dieter
New York, NY
love & trust

Last Sunday’s Fathers’ Day was an exceptional one for Dieter, just like the last three Fathers’ Day celebrations that have come prior to that. After growing up for so long without a father, this annual observance for patriarchs is something Dieter has not really kept for the longest time. How can he, when the one person who was supposed to rear him into manhood had been absent for so long?

And yet, the pain of that prolonged absence never stopped Dieter from reconnecting with his father when opportunity struck. Four years ago, his father resurfaced from a Bohemian lifestyle that had taken him to distant lands, farther and farther away from his family. Dieter had not heard from him in almost fifteen years, and it would have only been natural if the last thing he would have wanted was to talk to his father, much less see him.

Abiding by his tenet of “Love and Trust, the two things that encompass all humanity,” Dieter did the unexpected – he quit his job in New York and moved to Florida, where his father had relocated after contracting an illness that led him to finally stay put at one place. The selfless act not only brought their family closer to each other, it also made Dieter stronger inside, knowing that he was able to let go of all anger and resentment toward his father and accept him back into his life after all that they have been through.

Though it may seem like the perfect ending, Dieter acknowledges that things are far from happily ever after, that each day is still a learning experience, a step for both father and son to work on their relationship. He is very grateful though for the chance to really get to know his father better, no matter how delayed it may seem for most people.

Dieter is now back in New York where he is currently pursuing his dream of becoming a successful filmmaker, and nobody could be prouder of what he is accomplishing little by little, every single day than Dad.

Thou shalt educate

George
Colombo, Sri Lanka
steward

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan once remarked, “Education is a human right with immense power to transform. On its foundation rest the cornerstones of freedom, democracy and sustainable human development.”

George is a firm believer in the power of education to immensely ameliorate and empower civilization. It is his vision to bring about the same progress and development to Sri Lanka, a nation where the literacy rate has spiraled up over the years, yet still a vast population of the underprivileged have little access to the kind of education that every child deserves.

His quest into this ultimate goal of bringing quality education to his people began with his own life-altering journey to further supplement his studies. From his humble beginnings in his native Colombo where he shepherded a small congregation, George took the leap of faith and found himself in New York, where for the last eight years, he has undergone his own personal transformation.

“It was a journey of determination and motivation. And always, I tried as best as I could to keep my feet firmly planted on the ground,” George said meekly, relaying all the encounters brought about by his perusal of his Masters degree, and eventually his Post-doctorate studies. To come from a small country such as Sri Lanka, the actual move to New York was already a daunting endeavor in itself, and to complete two post-graduate studies successively in New York was a feat beyond all challenges.

No matter all the hardships and unexpected occurences, George remained fervent in his goal. Some time in April, he finally received the title of “Ph.D.” from Fordham University, an accomplishment too profound for him to put to words. But what really fulfills him above all else is the journey that lies ahead – now that he is fully equipped with the most viable training and knowledge, it is nearly time for him to make that trip back home and carry out his vision of implementing education as the most accessible right to all children and adults as well, in Sri Lanka.

Joyride

Vince
Cebu, Philippines
explorer

For someone who recently learned to ride a bike just early this year, Vince surely has one-upped most commuters by taking the ultimate thrill ride ever – a 200 mph drive at a NASCAR race track.

The adventure began when in the Spring of last year, Vince befriended an investment banker online. They had exchanged emails and talked on the phone for awhile, until one day, Vince had mentioned in passing how he was thrilled to be spending the summer here in New York, especially with its slew of free, outdoor concerts and film screenings.

Later that night, the biggest surprise awaited him on his inbox: his new friend was inviting him to start his summer season with the most daring activity of all the following morning. It just so happened that his friend, when not playing with numbers and charts at the boardroom, taught race car driving on the side. Totally blown away by the invitation, Vince had barely four hours left to prepare for his big trip, let alone catch some shut-eye.

Somehow, he still made it in time and six hours later, he found himself standing on a race track with his personal race car driving instructor in tow. The rustic, backwoods setting of the Poconos was a welcome respite for the young urbanite whose schedule revolved around a fulltime grad school course and internship at a film production company.

It amused Vince so much that he was actually engaging in such a macho sport with someone he’s only met for the first time. Considering that he mostly spends his free time trekking to museums, galleries, opera shows, and all things cultural one can find in New York, the day at the race track turned out to be an experience of a lifetime for Vince.

“Being that I have this penchant for adventure and a thirst for trying out new, unfamiliar things, it was but only natural to give the race car a shot,” he said, his face beaming. Strapped tight to his seat in the compact vehicle with a snug helmet and his heart leaping out of his chest, Vince completed five revolutions around the race track at speeds faster than the most powerful cyclone.

As soon as he stepped out of the car, the world around him was a total blur, but Vince says the experience was truly worth it, dizziness and all. The rest of his summer was just as unforgettable, but nothing had given him more adrenaline rush in his whole life than that one day at the race track. This summer, he doesn’t see any racing adventures happening, but he did finally learn to pedal a bicycle, albeit not as daredevil-like as a race car, but equally just as satisfying, especially now that he’s the one behind the wheels.