Dawn in New York City

I went early Saturday morning to see the Lord and Taylor holiday windows on Fifth Avenue. It was just past dawn; I was alone. In a few hours I would walk through New York City with my father, returning to the places that my mother loved (the fish tanks at Barney's, the vestibule of the Pierre Hotel, the lobby of the Four Season's). But right then, the smoke was rising off the streets, the lion at the public library slept with a wreathe about his neck, and it was just me.

I breathe most deeply in the early mornings. I see most acutely when the sky is changing colors.