i gave the last few of my hand-made business cards to people i met on the henry hudson bike trail. one girl was carrying a hula hoop, and some other kids were sitting in the middle of the trail talking. it made me think that it could be good to share this blog with more youth who might be really inspired by this story to create positive change.
after the 21 mile ride from east brunswick, i took the ferry from belford to the world financial center in manhattan. on the ferry i ate lunch and enjoyed the view out the front window as the city loomed closer and we passed the statue of liberty. when i got on shore the first thing i did was walk through the irish hunger memorial. it was impressive to me as a cultural and ethnobotanical work. the stones resonated with the spiritual energy of ancient ways, and the way the plants were arranged helped to give the sense of being on an old piece of farm land that had been cared for over the centuries. and there it sits right next to sky scrapers.
a young man from germany took this photo as i passed through the scene. i gave him my info and he was nice to send me the image! thanks joerg!
after over a week in relative seclusion at soft path farm i was intoxicated almost by the spiritual energy of all these people in close proximity. i followed the directions i had written down towards red hook, in brooklyn, NY.
just before getting to red hook i passed a small park that had a really good vibe. i decided to stop for a look and did a u-turn. there were two women hula hooping there in the grass! i've decided to always approach hoopers on this trip, because it has always led to positive interaction.
we chatted for a while and i was invited to attend the class the next night, in the same park. i'd have to see if it could be coordinated around sharing a dinner with my hosts...
my friend hannah showed me around red hook a bit. there are many little gardens, and one small farm, in this budding green community. it is very exciting! hannah said all she had to offer me were sweets, which she loves to bake and share with friends, but i suggested maybe she could pick some herbs from her garden... 'yeah! i could pick you a salad', she said. so before we parted she carefully picked and filled a small bag with peas and greens from the vertical pallets, planters, and pots out on the lower apartment roof. in addition to this little garden, she is keeping four chickens in a little side yard of a restaurant across the street. i'm so happy to know she is expressing this farmer part of herself in the limited capacity of the urban setting.
my final destination that evening was the friend of my east brunswick hosts, willy. i was accompanied to as far as prospect park by a friendly local guy on a hot pink peugeot. i had asked him to tell me where 9th was and he decided to ride with me, as he was heading home that way, to park slope. from prospect park i made my way down ocean parkway, where there is a designated bike path, which took me almost all the way to my host's old apartment building in 'midwood'. he was very hospitable and we chatted late into the night.
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