Loring Park in Minneapolis

Contrast of quaint vine-covered cottage with skyline in background

Yesterday a photographer friend and I spent part of the day photographing at Loring Park in Minneapolis. This urban park offers nature, beauty, and a bit of the rawness of city life all mixed together.

It’s a place where lovers sit together on a park bench, pan-handlers stand on corners, urban dwellers pass through, and homeless folks wander through or sleep on park benches.

“A city isn’t so unlike a person. They both have the marks to show they have many stories to tell. They see many faces. They tear things down and make new again.”
― Rasmenia Massoud, Broken Abroad

I am not a city dweller. I live in the suburbs and I grew up on a farm outside a very small rural town in Iowa. After almost 30 years living in an urban area, I was reminded once again that my experience of the city is an edited and essentially white middle class view and that there are many other experiences and stories in this beautiful city.

Although I enjoyed my time photographing in Loring Park, I did not feel comfortable there. When we first arrived a police car was parked in the middle of the park waking up someone who had been sleeping on the ground. After checking his ID and telling him to move on, the police officers drove off (directly across the park over grass and paved paths).

I walked around with a heightened awareness of who was around me and if there appeared to be any threat and was very glad to have a friend there with me. Still, I managed to find beauty in this environment and was reminded once again about how blessed I am.

While it was a small step outside my comfort zone, it was a step. When was the last time you took a small step outside your comfort zone?

May you walk in beauty.