Cinco de Mayo

This May 5th marks my 5th anniversary in NYC. On May 5, 2002 I arrived in La Guardia airport with my two suitcases and took a taxi for the second time to my apartment in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. My friend had done the hard work of finding an affordable place to live. We got the apartment in April, and I had visited once for a final interview with the NYC Teaching Fellows before the move. When I arrived, I had about six weeks before my summer intensive training would start, and I filled those days looking for affordable furniture, exploring the city, and swing dancing.

I love to remember those first weeks in the city. New York felt so big, scary, and tantalizing. Navigating the subway system and walking through new neighborhoods would set the butterflies in my stomach fluttering. I felt vulnerable, living off of my savings in a city where I had no family to save me. And I felt emboldened to be making this big change.
I arrived in the ideal season. In spring, the city blooms and comes to life with outdoor activities and free events. I knew I was about to enter into an extremely difficult program, but I embraced the challenge. I was idealistic and ready to see something new of the world.

NYC has worn down a lot of that idealistic naivete. It also became the place where I've made a home and a life for myself. It's my place, a place where I grew up and became wiser. I've done a lot in five years.

What's changed in the last five years:
1. I've changed apartments twice.
2. I've lived in three boroughs.
3. I earned my teaching license and a Master's degree.
4. I taught and quit teaching.
5. I worked at Scholastic for 2 years and quit that job.
6. I got married.
7. My husband and I bought a coop apartment.

I wonder what the next five years will bring. Happy Cinco de Mayo.