Yesterday the temperatures in New York, which have shinnied up and down in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s ever since I got here, (the 60’s almost always accompanied by whipping winds which made them feel ten degrees colder), finally inched up into the mid 70’s and sat there for the whole day! Central Park burst into full bloom. Residents, tourists, children, dogs, sat, rolled, romped, giggled, stood in awe, lay on blankets, spread picnics and took pictures. It reminded me of impressionist paintings as everything was a soft blur of pastel humanity amongst the flowers.
In the midst of all of this, at noon, on the giant rock over-looking the pond on the southeast end of the park, I met a friend of mine whose very sight brings delight to my soul and appreciation for God’s artistry in creating an aesthetically beautiful human.
I first met Mario fifteen years ago when my daughter introduced him to me as her new love interest. Mario’s unselfconscious, strong and soft presence combined with his Greek-Italian features, long dark hair and green dark eye-lashed eyes with an impish sparkle in them, were breath-taking.
Mario was and is a gardener in Central Park. The simplicity of his love and understanding of all things growing in the park, and his old fashioned work ethic in, rain, snow, freezing and boiling are old world refreshing and new world encouraging. I love this man.
Mario is now married and a father. When he speaks of his two-year-old Sofie, the light in his eyes send sparks up into the air and when he shares how she laughs at him and won’t eat when and what she’s ‘supposed’ to, I can feel ripples of wonder surrounding me. And so, on this particularly spectacular day in Central Park on top of the rock, Mario and I visited and looked out over his kingdom.When it was time for us to say ‘good-bye’ and for him to get back to work, he looked around and said “People are really enjoying the park today. That’s good”.
It’s so easy to make things very complicated in our lives.
And so easy not to.
