A Year In New York - "Right in the middle of it all"

Have I really been a New Yorker for a whole year?!  Has it been 365 days since I choked back tears as my family waved goodbye to me at the Birmingham airport?!  Was it a year ago that I showed up on Jane's doorstep with nothing more than three suitcases and a nervous smile "hello!"?  All the new friends, all the new experiences, all the new sights and sounds and thoughts...what a year that has set a new course, given a fresh perspective, defined my life in so many ways.   

As I celebrate this milestone, the phrase "right in the middle of it all" repeats in my mind.  I remember reading those words on a University of Alabama Million Dollar Band recruitment brochure I received in high school.  There were quotes from several band members who each stated how much joy he felt to be part of the organization.  Of course, the quote I zeroed in on was the one from the Crimsonette.  I can picture so clearly the image of her smiling face as she stood proudly on the field during pre-game, and the words of her quote that went something like this: 

"Just picture it - standing on the field in Bryant-Denny Stadium, the football team running onto the field, the cheerleaders jumping on the sidelines, the band playing Yea Alabama, all while 88,000 exuberant fans shake crimson pom-poms and cheer at the top of their lungs...and there I am, right in the middle of it all."

I got chills when I read that while sitting in the floor of my bedroom.  I gripped the thick paper of the brochure and read it again, my palms beginning to sweat.  "I want to stand on the field!  I want to be a Crimsonette!  I want to be right in the middle of it all!" 

That Crimsonette wish came true, and for five years I spent fall Saturdays right in the middle of it all.  I remember several times as I stood on the field and looked out at the crowd (sometimes while just standing at attention, but sometimes even during a fast-paced twirling routine), my own thoughts became louder than the cheering fans or the playing band, "I am on the field. I am twirling as a Crimsonette. I cannot believe I am getting to do this!" I would try to visualize the scene from a bird's eye view - get a glimpse of myself dressed in those crimson sequins and white boots, marching to the sounds of the band with the football frenzy all around, just trying to make sure it really was real.  

I find myself doing that now - stopping on the sidewalk to look around at the skyscrapers, the bustling crowds, the taxi-filled streets, and saying to myself, "I am in New York City!  I LIVE in New York! I cannot believe I am getting to do this!  Here I am, right in the middle of it all!"