Wonder // thoughts from the big apple

a Thursday post by Bleah Briann from Lovely 

currently listening to: gyspy by suzanne vega 

I’ve been thinking a lot about wonder, wonder and awe and the beauty that inspires it. I think, however, the deepest and truest form of awe, the kind the bears forth creativity – I believe the kind of awe that inspires writers and painters, musicians and artists of every field, is the awe that is inspired by the beauty of experience and not merely the beauty that we see with our eyes.

I recently spent a couple of weeks up north (as I’m originally from Texas). It was my first time being that far away from home since I was a very little girl. When I was five we took a trip to New Jersey and I hadn’t flown since. To be honest I didn’t think I would like the experience. I found myself on the phone with my boyfriend at five in the morning waiting in the check line trying not to cry. I was carrying around three heavy bags, all by myself in an airport getting ready to fly to New York City. My emotions, to say the very least, were more than conflicting. I will always be grateful to a cheery, thoughtful flight attendant with a glass of ginger ale and some pretzels.

I landed in New York and took a shuttle to our ritzy hotel in Time Square. The clash of diamonds, silk, and doorman with the dirt, grime, and pushy salesman on the way to my hotel were incredibly overwhelming and much different from my little Suburbia here in Southeast Texas. It was beautiful though, the people and the diversity they brought with them. The lights and the surreal feeling of finally being somewhere iconic instead of somewhere so misunderstood as the Lonestar state. In the midst of it all, passing Park Avenue (Just like monopoly!) and pulling up in front of the infamous spot where the ball would drop in just a week, I never thought that I would be spending my Christmas Eve in one of the most iconic spots in the world.

My trip was truly remarkable, a few of my favorite spots included Central Park, Greenwich Village (not pronounced phonetically, I’m glad I learned this from Extremely Loud before the trip), and Grand Central Station, if you’re ever there you should really take a peek at the whispering corners. They were pretty impressive, and whimsical.

I also spent a few days in D.C. looking through beautiful museums and enjoying fabulous food. I saw Le Mis in a national theater and went on a midnight tour of all of the monuments. My cousins and I also took a playful visit to the Zoo, and I ventured out to the subways on my own to take a peek at Georgetown and found a very hipster-esque paradise on my last day for a salted caramel hot cocoa and chat with a Scottish boy.

I came back full of awe and wonder, partially over the sights. The majesty of Central Park, the joy of seeing the Washington Square Arch, The Lincoln Memorial even, the view from Brooklyn Bridge was also pretty astounding.  At the end of the day though, I think the most wonder I found was in the feeling of floating 39,000 feet in the air, of the way my heart echoed the sound piano as the man played in Greenwich. Of being somewhere so many people had been before me. You see, real wonder, I’ve come to find, is in the feelings and the memories. Real inspiration comes from doing things and taking it all in, it also comes from finding out what means the most to you and why. I can’t wait to travel the world, learn the customs, and see the sights. I can’t wait to fill my life with inspiration from every corner of the globe – I also can’t wait for the cup of coffee I’m going to have with my friend today after Kickboxing and the way seeing her for the first time in a week is going to make me feel. You see loves, it’s all about the little things that make you happy. And not what anyone else says about them.

my name is bleah briann, i am an english major in my second semester of college in southwest texas. i'm not very good at a lot of endeavors, but writing is something that i seem to be fairly good at and i've tried to harness all of my creativity into that field for a couple of years now. blogging has helped me do that. you can read more about me as well as some of the other readers here. or you can just head over to my blog and meet me personally for yourself at lovely. i hope you have a really beautiful day and i'm incredibly excited to be writing for this blog!