Flash Mob, Foodie Fun & First Loves

Last Sunday, I got to be a part of a flash mob. 

It was my first one ever, a flash mob marriage proposal to Jason Derulo's Marry Me. 

Mel, Jaymee and I had been practicing for the past two months at home, so we totally rocked the rehearsal.

And then, to be dancing among such a large group of people (nearly 300, as per the coordinators), in order to be a part of someone's special moment?

It was definitely something else! Something wonderful.

(It also helped that the weather was gorgeous. And that we were in Central Park, by the beautiful Bethesda Fountain.)

rehearsals at Chelsea Studios

flash mob time in Central Park

---

Two weeks ago, on a rainy, gloomy Saturday, Mel, Jaymee, Jaymee's boyfriend Ephy & I ventured out of the house on a mission.

We were going to get to Smorgasburg in Brooklyn.

After an hour-long train trip, and getting a wee bit lost, we finally found it.

We were rewarded for our efforts by some mouth-watering food, and tempting, interesting items for sale.

All in all, a very good day.

You can see it for yourself in the video.

---

Some great loves are meant to be.
Some great loves are nurtured into existence.
In my case, it was a little bit of both.

Before I even came into the world, my parents nurtured this love.
It was in their whispers, the lilt of their voices, the flip of a page.

And once I arrived, their efforts intensified with covers laid bare, pages angled towards me and the cadence of their voices rising and falling as they read.

I took to it like a fish to water, soaking up what they had to offer.

Little did they know, little did I know, that it would change my whole life.

For even at the tender age of three, when I first started recognizing letters and combinations of them, I was in love. 

In love with words.

Words wrap around me and hold me close whenever I open the pages of a book. 

I lose myself in adventures in worlds fantastical and foreign, and make friends with characters both good and evil. 

I cherish the way a turn of phrase makes me feel, savoring each and every word, lingering when I can.

I am delighted when I can wrangle them perfectly - into phrases, sentences, paragraphs, stories.

Words are my favorite form of expression, the simplest, most natural way that I share my feelings with the world.

Words offer endless possibilities.

Words can be weapons.

Words can be art.

Words are a necessity.

Words are a comfort.

Words feel like home.

I am in love with words read, written and spoken.

And they are and will be my lifelong love affair.

[This bit of today's post was a response to my thoughts about first loves. I started thinking about it when Bloomsbury began promoting their First Loves Tumblr. As taken from the site, "First Loves is a tumblr from Bloomsbury Teen celebrating first loves in books and in real life! Our featured books for spring 2014 are The Chapel Wars by Lindsey Leavitt, Open Road Summer by Emery Lord, Searching for Sky for Jillian Cantor, Wish You Were Italian by Kristin Rae, and Fool Me Twice by Mandy Hubbard." I've read 3 of the 5 books they mentioned, and enjoyed them all! Go on and check out the Tumblr - I also have another post going up on there soon.]