I entered slowly, my eyes adjusting to the relative darkness. I heard the slow drip before I saw the stalactites covering the ceiling. My eyes darted from the ceiling to the ground as I stepped gingerly watching for icy spots that could send me into a tailspin! Memories of exploring and even swimming in caves flooded my mind.
But, this was not a cave! This was a short tunnel on a cold winter morning after some very cold weather followed by a thaw....and some more very cold weather...followed by warming. I've walked through this footpath tunnel, just blocks from Central Park, many times and I usually watch my footing and respect the old stones that line the floors and ceiling because even on a sunny morning, these warn rock can be slippery. I'm pretty sure this little tunnel has been around since the overhead rail was built long, long ago!
The train rolled overhead as I slowly traversed the underground ice "cave" and the slow drips turned to cold rain and then back to slow drips as I returned to the morning light. I stopped, removed my gloves, and grabbed my phone, thinking, "Thanks for this SOL post."
4 comments:
I'll bet you can't wait to take that walk when you don't have to deal with ice and cold. Right?
Bonnie
Anita, this is the perfect slice. If I was still teaching I'd use it as a mentor text. I loved your description and could see you stepping carefully through the tunnel. Love the pictures too!
What a great picture your words paint. For all of the times I have been to NYC I can count on one hand with fingers left over the number of times I have been in Central Park. I will need to fix this during our August trip.
That's what I love about the SOLC each year. I feel like it heightens our awareness to the world around us. Sliceable moments seem to crop up everywhere. With any luck, this writers awareness lingers long past March 31.
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