New York and Ground Zero

One of my favorite secular songs is New York by Alicia Keys. I have to agree--there’s just no city like it. Just walking through Times Square, lit to the max at 1:00 a.m., is unforgettable!

On my last visit, I walked a total of 38 miles around Manhattan in five days! I wanted to revisit Little Italy and some of the places I'd been before. But I also wanted to tour the spectacular Metropolitan Museum of Art and, hopefully get to at least see Carnegie Hall. I did both. I also walked some of the Highline in the Meatpacking District and through the Fashion and Theater Districts, Tribecca, Chelsea and SoHo. Every mile afforded one great experience after another. Thirty-eight miles will get you to a lot of places in Manhattan!

I revisited St. Patrick’s Cathedral--a haven in the never-ending bustle of the city. It afforded a special quiet moment to say a prayer for my family and my country. Another evening, I happened upon Reverend Norman Vincent Peale’s church. That was an unexpected treat! Issues of Guidepost Magazine that he founded have long been a staple in my home.

I also revisited The Wolcott Hotel—a blast from my past. I had worked with WORLD Magazine’s World Journalism Institute (see www.worldji.com) during the first half of 2001. That May, I had helped host a two-week conference at the King’s College, housed in the Empire State Building. Our students and I had stayed here, a couple of blocks away.

I hadn’t been back to New York City since that time--a mere four months before America would be forever changed. Fittingly, my current trip included a somber and reflective visit to One World Trade and the 9/11 Memorial there at Ground Zero. It serves to reinforce the need for America’s vigilance of the challenges both within and without our borders.

What about 9/11 can you say that hasn’t already been said? I’ll leave it at this: walking through the display of photos of the close to 3,000 victims, I overheard a woman quietly point one out to her companions: “This is my father.” Such are the remnants of terrorism.