I miss New York so much and so often. For those of you that don’t know, it was my home before I decided to go on the World Race.
First, for a few months in college interning with Dan Rather Reports.
Again, a little over a year ago reporting for RNN Channel 1.
I learned a lot from my time in NYC, like how to avoid rats in the subway and where to go for the best pizza (Joe’s). However, one thing I’m still learning from my time in New York is how to treat strangers.
I moved to the city as a 21-year old girl, fresh out of the Texas country.
My first day of interning, I made my way down the stairs of my NYU apartment building and stepped into the busy city street, terrified. I followed the directions I’d written on my hand to my subway entrance, scanning the ceilings, looking for my color and letters, (N-Q-R / Yellow).
Suddenly, they’re swarming me. Dozens of strangers with backpacks and briefcases, shoving me forward and onto the platform.
It’s now or never, I tell myself.
I push my way onto the train and sit down with a sigh of relief and a smile to the strangers around me. I did it!
A couple weeks later, Dan Rather took me aside. “You’re a Texas girl. I bet you’re smiling and making eye contact with strangers here in the city. Take it from me, just don’t do it. Ignore everyone and get where you’re going.”
It was a lesson that would be learned the hard way.
The frantic mother who asks to borrow my phone (and then talks for an hour). The businessman who just needs $1 for the subway (then proceeds to ask the next dozen behind me). The homeless man who begs for money for medicine (then walks straight into the liquor store). And I fell for it every time. By the end of my first month in the city, I was feeling very poor and very foolish.
One day, when walking to Union Square with a friend from Brooklyn, a stranger approached us.
“No!” My friend exclaimed and kept walking. Initially, I was shocked. However, when the man turned on his heels, the shock turned to admiration.
“If he was a gentleman, he wouldn’t be asking two girls anyway,” she explained. “Same goes for the women. You can’t save everyone in this city.”
The next day I woke up, determined to become a tough city girl. It worked like a charm. No one messed with me. I felt like I’d learned the secret to the city.
One evening, I was walking through Central Park alone, heading to a Hillsong church event. As usual, I’m getting pretty lost in the park and a little creeped out when I see a girl approaching me with a handful of papers.
“I’m sorry, but no,” I tell her, putting my head down and continuing my journey.
Finally, I find my church friends and join the celebration.
To my horror, I suddenly see the girl with all the papers joining the group. I suddenly realized that those papers were printed Google Maps directions. She was just lost, trying to find her way, and probably recognized me from the church.
Suddenly, I got a sinking feeling in my stomach. I approached her an apologized, trying to explain myself. Thankfully, she laughed it away and understood my concern.
Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. I needed to find the balance between being street-smart and being Jesus-smart.
I began using the Holy Spirit as my guide. Usually, my response was “No!” But, ever so often, I heard the Holy Spirit say a quiet “Yes.”
It’s a fine line to walk, and it’s one that I continue to walk to this day.
On the race, my experience has been both a blessing and a curse.
When a stranger approaches my teammates, I have to check with the spirit. Is this a ministry moment? Or is it a “get the hell away from my teammate” moment?
At least one person on my team needs to be this way, I guess. If a stranger approaches us and asks for directions, I’m on high alert. When an old lady in the street asks us where we’re going, I never give specifics.
I’m always looking for the intention of the interaction, especially since we’re in a foreign country.
After falling prey to these tactics many times in New York, I usually turn a tough shoulder to strangers. Sure, this has its benefits, but it also has it’s time and place; because I am here to serve strangers. I’m here to show everyone I meet the love of God.
This is a process for me, learning to trust the Holy Spirit and find the balance.
And this is also where you come in. Please pray for me, for an abundance of the gift of discernment. Both abroad and at home, it’s a gift I’m still learning to walk in.
But the journey has been beautiful.
