Independence

But then a few hours later, with the day well under way and the cars amassing in the veins,
I crest a hill to see Manhattan spread out before me,
and I take a breath so deep I didn't know my lungs had been empty all this time. 

Returning to New York City after a time away is like seeing in color after
settling for black and white.
It's turning the brightness up on your dimmer lights, it's
a buzz in your skin that you never again want to lose.

I drove alongside the island, watching it undulate from the Brooklyn shore,
and thought only I love you, I love you, I love you, and when
they tell me I should perhaps learn to be satisfied, or settle, or build a life of good enough,
I will remind them that if a person, place, or thing does not sit like a deep breath in your chest and
a smile in your heart,
it would be a dishonor to our lives to stay with them.

This city taught me what love is, and now
I never have to accept any less.