Her heart beats at the center of Washington Square
and her hair gracefully falls down her back at Washington Place.
Daily, her arms stretch from Mercer to East 8th to welcome me with a warm embrace.

But does she love me ?

I'm not like her past lovers; most don’t look like me. Or sound like me.

Even still, she accepted me.

Why?

As her student, she’s taught me a lot these past three years.
Tedious lessons on her favorite Texts and Ideas were less than enjoyable.

But it was her life lessons I've valued most.

Our favorite meeting place was the ARC.
It was there that she revealed to me her diversity.

She indeed did have lovers who looked like me, came from similar areas as me, and felt out of place... like me.

There, we would congregate and tell stories about her

-- some good and some bad

but it was in that community where the bad baggage felt lighter.

All along, she had a place near her heart for me:
at the corner of Washington Place and Green Street.
Upon this discovery, her embrace began to feel warmer
and slowly I began to find my place with you.

NYU (Now You Understand…)