Saturday, January 19th, 2013

     I sit away from the main area of Baum Grove Parklet so I can observe the small landscape and blend into the nature that sits in the middle of a neighborhood in Shadyside.  I’m trying to blend into the vines that crawl up the side of the apartment building that faces the entire park. For a moment I’m stunned that in January, I’m able to sit on green grass in just my polar fleece. This Pittsburgh weather is unlike any other climate I’ve lived in. Where are the snow banks that transform the flat landscape into small mountains? Where are the snowflakes that fall in clumps the size of quarters and the wind that blows so cold every breath brings on an undiagnosed round of asthma? It is January and I am sitting in green grass with the sun warming my cheeks and hands observing the smallest park I’ve ever witnessed.

     It’s hard to tell that behind the trees there is a neighborhood. The trunks of the trees are not thick. Not nearly as thick as some of the Elm trees I’ve seen growing along the boulevard back home in Minneapolis. However the lining of this park makes up in abundance of trees rather than the size of the bark. Above the trunks the branches tangle between one another as if holding hands or joining arms to keep the houses, buildings, street signs, and city out. The trees only seem to let in the clear sky and sunshine that are rare in the steel city.When the wind does blow that branches collide making several cracks and creaks.
     I’m so mesmerized by the trees that I almost forget I’m still sitting in a park next to a green garbage can. I’m surprised to find that the grass around me is clear of candy wrappers or cigarette butts. I oddly seem to be the only piece of material, besides the garbage can, that is occupying the grass. I am also the only human being that has been in the park for the past twenty minutes.

     I find it odd that no one else has entered the park or was here when I arrived shortly after noon. No one is sitting on the benches that circle a small garden in the center of the park. Not one dog being walked along the pathway from one end of the park to the other. There are no children zig-zagging between the trees or attempting to climb the one maple that has branches low enough to grab a hold of. Why is no one taking advantage of the beautiful weather and the green space available right in the city? 

 I can hypothesize and imagine all the possible scenarios as to why no one in the neighborhood is experiencing the parklet. For now I'll just hope that sometime in the days I'm not here, sitting in the grass with the trees to guard me, someone will venture to this park.