NYC Kindness

When we moved to Manhattan this summer I made some assumptions of how life would be. Here are three of them: The noise will be constant and overwhelming.Eating out will be very expensive and groceries will be hard to find.There will be little smiling and less kindness.I was wrong on all three counts.Noise. Yes the City is a loud place. But there are not constant sirens or horns honking (a silly assumption when you think about it). There is the hum of a lot of movement and times when it gets busier so yes it’s noisy. But there is not the overwhelming constant I-can’t-hear-myself-think noise I was worried about. In fact I find that when I do hear a siren I say a little prayer for the driver of the emergency vehicle and for those waiting for the rescue it will bring. (And no I am not on my knees all day. Teehee)Food. The ground floor of the building we live in has a full size grocery store! Granted the lay out of the store is unusual to me but it’s all there: produce, deli counter, bakery, dairy case, you name it. Not to mention there are specialty shops a block in any direction that stock fruits and meats and all the good eats to keep us fed and healthy. As for eating out, yes we could spend a fortune. However we have found wandering by little restaurants and reading the menus there are deals on meals all around. And tasty surprises.Kindness. No one will smile in New York City. What a ridiculous assumption. From bank teller to apartment concierge from deli counter butcher to the gal at the laundromat I have found pleasant people everywhere. I am willing to smile first and I am rewarded with kind interactions all round. In fact the other day when I left my knit bag at the train station, I was able to call and find it!Yes living in New York City is very different than the quiet suburbs I was used to. But looking at the City with open eyes I find good surprises and little bits of kindness rather than just the stereotypes from my assumptions.