Like something out of a movie: people from all classes, ages, and identities, are congregated here today. They walk casually through the park, parents with strollers and small children, with one family laughing as their toddler animatedly tells a story. All sorts gather on the park benches, from young friends eating sandwiches and chatting happily, to old couples talking quietly together. Some sit alone, reading or writing in a journal. Though the trees are bare and the grassy spots are roped off, the park is more inviting than any I have seen. The sky is a clear, perfect blue; the air is unseasonably warm for February, though still mild and fresh. There are people in the tennis courts, and an occasional jogger with his iPod.
And the children.
Children on scooters, laughing and racing each other along the cement pathways; children on the playground, and in the sandboxes with their parents; smaller children still, waving their arms with delight as they chase fluttering pigeons, and one small boy playing hide-and-seek with his grandmother.
No sense of irony or showmanship in this scene; this is a genuine portrait of life here in the gardens, and the people are not acting. It is beautiful.
Bien fait! Admirablement écrit!
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