Originally Posted on Feb. 19, 2021

When I was 18 years old, Kristy and Brady took me to NYC. As a freshman in college, I had limited life experience. I was still getting lost in big parking lots (no joke ).

After seeing Times Square, I realized how much more magnificent and bright the view is in person, rather than on a movie screen or poster. To look at the Pillsbury Doughboy at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, I had to tilt my head back as the balloon was carried down the street.

One cold November night on the streets of NYC, Brady, Cody, and I decided we wanted gelato ice cream from a vendor - so we did. I complained about freezing, and Kristy, standing next to Makayla and holding a cup of hot chocolate, just laughed and said, “You’re the one who wanted ice cream.”

The four of us also visited three-story stores that are only a single story in Oklahoma. My favorite was Victoria’s Secret with its flashy pink signs and multiple escalators. That’s where I bought my pink hoodie that I still wear today.

Since I’ve arrived in Qatar, I’ve missed my family, of course. When I visit malls, I think of Kristy, Brady, Makayla, and Cody in particular as scenes of NYC flash through my mind.

An adventurer, Kristy was always planning out the next vacation. If she were at the Villaggio Mall with me, she would have liked seeing the rows of Louis Vuitton purses sitting on clear shelves in a store that has mirrors for walls. She would have taken photos of us girls - Makayla, Cody, Mary, Jacy, Callie, Mama, and Granny - in front of the water canal with the indoor street lights in the background. She would have gazed up at the painted blue sky with the marshmallow-like clouds and said, “Look, VB.”

I’m looking, sister.