It was day three in New York City and Burk wanted to see where the World Trade Center towers used to stand.  He said the skyline felt empty without them.  We went down to see a huge, yawning, hole one city block wide with dust rising up from the construction.  It was 2008 and still so shocking to see the emptiness despite the fact that I had never been.  Wandering away I stumbled upon an old graveyard in a tiny church nearby.  As I studied the tombstones dating back to the Revolutionary War I was delighted to discover it was in an Episcopal Church!  Everyone in the world probably knew that but me.  It was the Parish of Trinity Church on Wall Street.  Seeking respite from the dust, sadness and noise, the highlight of my time in New York was walking into the beautiful church’s quiet, reassuring serenity.  It wasn’t a Sunday but they were having a noonday worship service.  Burk and I kneeled and slid into an old, high wooden pew with a door made to help keep out the cold during the winter months a long time ago.  I loved the feel of privacy and found myself wishing our church had them.  As an Episcopalian, it was a joy to be in my own church.  More than anything I remember the mantle of peace that settled around me when right outside the cacophony of controlled chaos abounded.  A small Gothic Revival church, its spire and cross was the highest point in the city until 1890.  Walking out to discover the sculpture pictured above and just outside the church was the added balm to my soul.  “The Trinity Root” is a bronze sculpture created directly from the base of the great Sycamore tree that helped save St. Paul’s Chapel (part of the the church) and the historic cemetery from falling debris after the collapse of the twin towers.  When one sees how close the little church is I believe it is a miracle it was not destroyed.  The 70 year old tree was felled by the impact of the enormous crumbling buildings across the street and absorbed shockwaves which a physicist has compared to those of a small nuclear bomb.  It was laying in such a way as to shield the historic chapel and its ancient tombstones.  Sculptor Steve Tobin carefully worked to preserve the natural remnants of the now famous Trinity tree root using the “lost wax process”.  It is made of bronze and its actual sprawling root branches are 20 feet long, 15 feet wide and 12 1/2 feet tall.  Next we had lunch on the street like real New Yorkers.  As a vegetarian, I had always wanted to try falafels and they had a stand near the city’s oldest public park, Bowling Green, built in 1733.  They were absolutely delicious!  Wherever I go, wolves and Native peoples/things always find me — or I find them.  This time was no different.  We had no idea the National Museum of the American Indian was right next to us and got to study many of the pieces from peoples we had seen on our trip to Alaska.  To top it off the museum was free!  I would say this was definitely the hidden jewel of New York’s museums.  Burk’s Aunt lives in the city and she was having a party that night to celebrate her birthday.  It was lovely to be with family and drink champagne while we sailed around Manhattan on a chartered yacht at sunset.  The light refracting off the buildings was beautiful and we had a wonderful time.  English writer Augustus Hare said, “Thought is the wind, knowledge the sail, and mankind the vessel.”  We discovered, we learned, and we reflected upon it all as we glided over the water that night amidst the tangy spray of the sea.  It was a perfect ending to a lovely day.