Walk in the Park

At the Como Conservatory, St. Paul,

photo by Michael Hartford

I was so inspired by these Como Park pictures by Michael Hartford that I spent Sunday night and Monday lunch at the park: first Sunday evening in "The Enchanted Garden" and then Monday noon in the Conservatory and Japanese Garden. I was blue after saying goodbye to my parents, who I won't see now for eight months or so. The park uplifted me. (And so did Hartford's pictures. You can see more of his work here.)

I love city parks. For many of us, city parks provide some of the only green space in a packed urban landscape. I love stone (and glass) structures in city parks. Luckily, St. Paul enjoys the labors of city architects like the pioneering Cap Wigington and craftsmen of the WPA.

I know the saying about Central Park that millions of native New Yorkers tell their grandchildren: "This is what New York looked like before all the buildings were here." I'm sure there are many St. Paulites who will say the same thing about Como Park--and Phalen Park and Highland Park, too.

Yesterday I saw three German tourists walk the rock paths in the Japanese Garden. Then I saw a photographer and two beautiful Korean women take pictures near the Frog Pond. And I saw an old chap, in tan work pants, a flannel shirt and braces, sitting alone and quite content on a bench near the rose gardens.

It's the official beginning of fall. If you live in a city, save a little time for yourself and take lunch in a city park near you. It'll make your day.