Life is Made of Small Moments Like This

“It’s finally here,” I thought to myself as I laced up my Dr. Marten boots and fastened my face gems, a soft smile on my face, just before heading out of the hotel with all of my closest friends. We had come from all over the tristate area to be together for our favorite weekend of the year in the big Apple. Electric Zoo weekend had just begun.

That first gust of wind from the end-of-August heat smacked us in the face as we took our first steps outside. All eyes were on us, as we were a giant group of twenty-somethings wearing bright colors and eccentric accessories, a rainbow taking over the mundane Manhattan streets.

Chelle and Cheddar were the first to start hyping us all up with their high energy. You could hear the squeaking of sneakers against the pavement as we skipped and danced down First Ave. Butterflies fluttered around in my stomach in anticipation of the night ahead. This was our time to free our minds, bodies, and souls of the stresses in our lives. Our escape.

The smells of halal food and sewer water came and went through my nostrils and the hot summer sun was beating down on my bare shoulders. Joy filled my body as I turned my head back and saw a trail of my favorite humans parading behind me, smiles from ear to ear. These friends have become family over the last 5 years; an overwhelming feeling of gratitude rushed over me.

Sweat began to drip down my face as we finally approached the footbridge. I waited at the bottom of the stairs as our group slowly gathered back together. This bridge has always been my favorite part of the road to EZoo, as it connected the face-paced city life of Manhattan to the beautiful greenery of Randall’s Island Park. This bridge is where I could begin to feel the bass from the festival speakers start to shake the ground beneath me and put chills up and down my back. I could see the tips of the main stage appearing over the leaves of the trees in the distance. The water beneath me was glistening and the sky above me was bluer than ever.

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As we left the festival grounds for the day, our feet were throbbing, but our hearts were full. My heart was racing as a result of the adrenaline still pumping through my body and my face was sticky and covered in glitter. I looked up to see the sea of lights radiating from the skyscrapers across the horizon and the moon shining bright above. I looked down and noticed my quads were bulging and my shoes were covered in dust.

At this point, no amount of water could quench my thirst. It certainly didn't help that my water had been sitting in my hydration pack all day and was warm and unpleasant. As I finished the last of it, my camelback became as light as a feather and relieved some of the tension in my shoulders.

I never realized it was possible to have so many physical ailments, but yet be in such good spirits.

Despite the pain in my legs, I still managed to be one of the leaders of the pack. I could hear my friends giggling, chatting, and singing behind me. A light breeze swept across my shoulders, which sent a chill down my back, so I quickly wrapped my pashmina around me. I couldn't tell if I was still hearing the beat of the music or if that was just a ringing in my ear. I think it was a little bit of both, but I didn’t mind.