My Happy Place Team Lily Pads: Anjika Friedman-Jha and Sanjana Shanmugavel Username: AnjikaFriedman-Jha Email: anjika.friedman-jha@jerichoapps.org School: Jericho High School
My happy place is not a place that I visit often, rather it is an experience of a lifetime that I turn to when I feel like taking my mind off of my present hurdles. This picture was taken at the top of Avalanche Peak after my family and I had climbed 2,000 feet in two miles to finally reach the summit. The wind was howling and I could barely hear my own thoughts, and that was part of the mystique of the place. For me, when I find myself overrun with racing thoughts, I remind myself of this place where all there was to focus on was the breathtaking views. With nothing but the naked eye, I could see for miles throughout Yellowstone National Park and I saw the entirety of Yellowstone Lake.
What do I hear? Howling wind that speaks volumes. It drowns out my own mortal thoughts and replaces them with the idea of being infinite in a wilderness full of other living breathing beings just like me. What do I smell? I smell the clean, crisp air of untouched forest, a smell that I turned too when I at times feel stifled by the overwhelming impacts of urbanization. It is important to clear the mind and experience for yourself the feeling of being in the middle of absolutely nowhere and at the same time feeling complete. What do i see? I see for miles and miles on end of open wilderness and forests full of wildlife. I felt as much of a part of this scene as possible, when in the hurry of twenty first century life I often find myself becoming a secondary character in my own motion picture.
What memory does this place evoke? Chapped lips and wind chimes They sway to fill the sticky air The music flying on a carpet of moss overlooking tanned skin Cotton candy clouds drip with placid drops of dew Even the atmosphere knows it's best to sit still and watch the fireflies illuminate the night sky On hot days and swell nights when the concrete jungle just wants tranquility Street lamps and sidewalks trading in their sirens for something a little more serene And then when the crowds have all gone home The curtains finally closed The performance has come to an end and the stage stills Sink into the grass and share the violet night with the stars My eyes flutter shut and the ashes of a former life float in the wind, but that's all behind me now A howling, howling wind Mind mad with remembering Sun burnt cheeks drowning with sights of placid lakes Of old dreams and storytelling overlords looking for their fix But rather than pulling hairs out onto a rocky peak that is also leaning toward insanity I will Rest my head on the universe and let it consume me
After all it's just a bunch of space It has enough room for one more While other hotels are vacant I am occupied by my bones The daiquiri of vermillion coursing through my veins is enough for me And the breaths of oxygen are really all I need The fireflies and I will be just fine on our own for the first time So for those summer days When others are searching for answers in the eyes of friends or lovers Searching somewhere for nostalgia, always coming up empty handed, Searching for conversation in a world with nothing to discuss I am all the excess on earth Existing is the one thing I know how to do And I just keep on breathing breaths of clean, crisp air I float in and out with my head in the clouds, obscured Until the morning rays bring me back to the sea sky I am inundated by waves of bliss Serendipity sunrises remind me that everything is okay Buildings may collapse, destruction may unleash it's wrecking ball every once in a while But as long as I sit still Penetrated by only beams of light Unadulterated wilderness I think I may have found the end of the tunnel And for now this is enough for me