NYC Marathon: Mile 24

Behind the Painting

I took the train into Manhattan. I entered Central Park at Mile 24. I set up to paint in the crowd, fall color punctuated by explosions of confetti, curves of the Guggenheim catching the light of the setting sun.

The runners passed by in endless waves. A man draped in the Colombian flag cheered with his daughter.

"Vamos Colombia! Vamos Argentina!"

A family held big signs with their daughter's face, and smaller signs reading "Go Sarrie Go!"

Minutes later they erupted in cheers. "There she is!" She stopped to hug them, orange shirt and tearful smiles, then continued on to the finish line. The noise was constant. Bells chiming. Air horns blaring. Crowd shouting names emblazoned on the runner's uniforms.

"You got it Dayna! You got it Rafael!"

A runner stopped to embrace her dog. Another took a selfie with her partner. A crowd of twenty somethings ran out to greet their friend, jumping up and down in excitement, and I found myself choking back tears too.

I finished painting and walked along The Reservoir, looking out at the sunset and the rippling water. Leaving the park and crossing Fifth Avenue, I overheard a couple's conversation beside me.

"I wonder if I ran the marathon how long it would take me?"