LEAVING NYC

The high rises are no longer my pillars of protection,
hot dog carts are no longer obstacles I must avoid,
frantic car horns and engines will no longer muffle the sounds of life
fashion fits and color coordination I no longer care for
man hole covers will not steam my shorts on sweltering days
bad attitudes fleeting are now a mockery and my amusement
Bodegas and Grocery stores will not rob me with overpriced necessities
underground train stations will not sweat the living out of me
Police officers will no longer stop and frisk me
I will not have to say no to the drug dealer anymore
but I will miss...

Spanish music blaring from window sills
Mister Softee Ice Cream Trucks in the summertime
Fire hydrants open on hot sunny days
The band shell, the Fountain, and meadow in Central Park
Street performers and the Village on a Saturday Night
Bar hopping with drunk friends and dancing women
late night pizza shops and late night munchies
Yankee games and the Bronx Zoo but I will always
stay true to the white and pinstripe blue
and so to the city I say adieu...

Time to start a new chapter in my life

Reviews

[Muse]

Never been to NYC. But reading this "almost" makes me want to venture there.

[Amila Jay]

I've never been to NYC, but I know it's hard to leave some place you've lived and made memories with. A good write :))

[Kenneth The Poet]

Love the simple compare and contrast here, Rene. I know this feeling very well.

[rivers]

Having only been to NYC maybe six times your poem sums up the impression I have.
I could never leave the nature where my most spiritual moments are spent. As a half breed american native, the towers of the economic system is not the place for me...Nice to visit the culture but I know where I belong... I accept who I am seen as and who I know I am not. The conscious moment is the only moment where I am one and whole. It's hard enough to stay there in the woods but I thank you for the memory you leave behind with the rest of the past...

[freelancejouster]

i like that you present the dark side and then the light of the place you're leaving. the bad and then the good. it's sort of that effect when you leave some place you're excited to leave but you'll miss it terribly.
i'm going through this currently as i'm applying and accepted to far away colleges.
aptly described.

[*~*Butterfly Kisses*~*]

As it was said it is hard to leave the places we've spent some time of our lives living. This is actually the opposite for me in a way as I left the country to be in NYC for school. But as they say you can leave, but theres always a small place in your heart.

[Coyote Poetry]

Hard to leave places where we lived a long time. I like your description and story of life in New York city. A new start is opportunity to discover and learn new things. Good luck. Thank you for the excellent poem.
Coyote

[roarke]

There's always a trade off and you've defined it here with style and heart felt consideration. Look at your new location with the same observant gaze. Nice piece.

[Sethnicity]

Beautiful! reminds me of my last big move.... Very alive pictures you painted in this piece and and you can see and smell and feel the bitter sweetness of change and moving... Beautiful poem.. Only question is where you are moving too..

[Aidz]

You always paint the perfect pictures Rene, words that carry me into your world, thanks for the journey