A Child’s Surprise

We saw a gift that was delivered downstairs, close to the entry door. It was this enormous box with one of those motorized cars kids can sit in and ride. When we read the address on the box, we realized it was for my tiny neighbor right next to us down the hall. We got so excited, we commented with delight. He is going to be sooooo excited. (Not sure where his mom will hide that thing).

There is something about children and the magic of Christmas. Find a way to add wonder to a child’s experience of Christmas. It truly brings joy— even to an observer.

Waiting

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Waiting has been a theme recently. I think my whole week of Glorify App devotionals were about waiting. Then, I heard the sermon Fourteen, about waiting and the transformation in the journey. We have Christmas coming up, which is filled with much anticipation and waiting. It reminds us we are waiting for that second advent with longing and strength.

I was doing laundry the other day (waiting to use a machine) and a woman was taking things from the washer to the dryer, one by one. As she tortured me, I reflected on things we used to wait for that now we don’t have to wait for—

Food— most people get delivery— which skips the line entirely. We also have apps to order ahead.

Movies— we had to wait a long time to rent something and watch it at home. Now, things hit streaming at the same time or shortly after theater release.

TV— you couldn’t binge. You had to wait each week for the next episode and sit through many more ads.

Knowledge— research was slower. It required flipping through multiple books and sometimes waiting for those books to be available.

Purchases— shipping has never been faster. In cities like NYC, you can even get same-day delivery. With things like Kindle, you can immediately start reading something without leaving your bed.

Connection— long distance calls were expensive. Most of us had a shared landline, so you also had to wait to use a phone. Because of shared phones, you also had to make small talk with whoever answered the phone on the other end.

Things are faster; we have less patience. But some things in life still and will always require the wait. We mustn’t waste the rare wait.

Hold My Stick: We Need New York Vibes

“Great teams are essentially playing against themselves and how great they think they can be, and that opponent is nothing but in my way to me being as great as I can be.” Matthew McConaughey in conversation with Theo Von

By: Gabriela Yareliz

The New York Rangers will be hitting the ice tonight to play the Senators after Tuesday’s (lucky) win against the Dallas Stars.

You can find the analysis of the identity-less team anywhere you look. But I am here to talk about us fans. We’re frustrated. Somewhere in the world (maybe Boston?) Peter Laviolette is laughing and feeling so good he is not subjected to this pit of instability with these players.

I feel confident I understand what the fandom wants. Clearly, it’s not landing for the management or players. So, I’ll spell it out. This is what fans want to see less of:

  1. Injuries

Who exactly will be on the ice is a million-dollar question, because it feels like half the team is out on injury (Fox, Rempe, Quick…). Ok, not half the team, but the players who make a difference.

The timeline of the injured remains uncertain, but with each passing game, the team looks unfamiliar and disjointed. It feels like the third season of the Rangers lacking structure. We’ll see if Lafrenière returns after a bloody stick to the face. He played the rest of the game, but so did the others who are now out for weeks.

This bloody stick to the face caused a four-minute power play for the Rangers. Close to the end of the game—after about ten minutes of power play, the Rangers were still at one point.

2. Unsuccessful Power Plays

Four power plays and one point. Now, last year we couldn’t score on a power play to save our lives. We could only score short-handed (don’t ask).

Coaching needs to implement structure with the players who get out there to score because the scoring isn’t happening. And when it does, it comes with risk (removing a goalie when the team doesn’t have a good handle on controlling the puck) or a fast shot or broken play infused with luck.

The players are slow, predictable (in the worst ways), and imprecise (always going wide on their slow predictable shots).

3. Delusional Commentary

I am convinced the real caring fans are the passionate ones. The ones who want to see these guys win.

Not the ones in the comments on social media calling Mika a star when he doesn’t score the majority of his time on ice, but the ones who call this team on their BS. (The only commentators who give us honesty are John Giannone and Steve Valiquette).

The new line Game 7, co-created by Mark Messier, is correct in analogizing sports to life. The deep fans feel the sport deeply because they are the ones who know what it feels like to defy odds and push through. When you don’t have a team that does the same, it is disappointing.

The Rangers need leadership, and more than that, each man on the ice needs to stop being okay with the mediocrity they bring to the table.

The commentators need to stop saying the team needs to be “rewarded” for their effort or that they outplayed other teams when they lost. If that were true, they would have won.

Part of me is unsure if someone is telling the commentators in their earpiece that they need to be positive or they will be fired— but it is odd to hear commentary that doesn’t match the game we were all watching together. Gaslighting the fans, whether it be the commentator or the players in the locker room is not landing well. This is why MSG is empty even while MSG is giving away tickets with food vouchers.

The fans don’t want dirt cheap tickets to waste their time at the Garden. They want a team worth watching.

——

When you see large groups of Rangers fans you will see a lot of 1994 gear. I saw a man this morning in front of a Dunkin with a Rangers jacket, and you know what it said? It was a 1994 Stanley Cup jacket. Most fans rally around the 1994 team that defied the mediocrity that seems to stalk this franchise. Why? Because people like to win. They deep down inside crave excellence, discipline and the reminder that one can WIN and win BIG.

The current players need to decide they want to win. They haven’t, yet. We all know it. Until that happens, nothing will change. They can change the coaching staff and keep hoping. I don’t think Mike Sullivan has gotten through (a conversation for another day). Captain Miller — jury is still out on him. But what we mostly see from his body language is he is tired. Tired of what? I don’t know. But I hope that soon they become tired of losing.

We need sustainable wins and marked strategy. In a time and era where people accept “good enough”, we need a team that truly represents the New York spirit. A team that can grind it out and fight like hell. What is more New York than that?

AF’s America

“There’s something I want you to remember today…

America isn’t great because it’s easy.

It’s great because for generations…

Men and women have put their heads down, worked their asses off, and built something out of nothing.

That’s the America I believe in.

The America that rewards effort.

The America that values freedom.

The America where anyone willing to grind it out can change their life.” Andy Frisella

A Dash of Anticipation

By: Gabriela Yareliz

I am on a ghost train.

A ghost train is one that does not appear on any of the apps and systems. The train that arrives and confuses all platformed passengers when the board says the next train arrives in 14 minutes.

The board tells you delays. Reality tells you it has arrived.

Early this morning, as I walked to the first train of the adventure (the train preceding the ghost train), I saw a mailman with a stack of packages. He hopped up the stairs and rang the doorbell and turned to go back to his truck. Bless our delivery people who work insanely hard during this season. I like to make them a little treat during this busy time.

Yesterday, we started our advent calendars. The excitement is so real. There is something absolutely brilliant about anticipation. It adds a real thrill to life. I am reminded that we should build more anticipation. There is nothing like magic we plan and create. There is something special about waiting for something certain. We can create certain certainties.

Here is your PSA to create some magic. And not just in this season, but every season.

Masked in Convenience

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Jon Haidt (author of The Anxious Generation) asked ChatGPT how the devil would destroy the next generations. Its answer— the devil comes in convenience.

“Convince them that comfort, consumption, and self-expression are the highest goods, while restraint, sacrifice, and long-term commitment are oppressive. That way, they’ll celebrate indulgence while mocking tradition and discipline—the very things that build strength and freedom across generations.”

Haidt’s essay, which was previously published on The Free Press, and is now on his Substack After Babel, was a fascinating one. I encourage you check it out if you get a minute.

Maximum Tilt

A favorite winter movie.

By: Gabriela Yareliz

We have reached our “maximum tilt away from the sun,” my almanac tells me for the month of December. I tuck the ribbon bookmark into our last month.

There is a soft tap-tap on the window of rain mixed with some sort of sleet because it sounds harder than just rain. It’s cold outside but not nearly as frigid as the Midwest’s snow slam or Friday’s wind tunnel in NYC, which made it feel like 18F, cutting to the bone.

I feel like I have come full circle with winter. As a child, I found it to be magical. I, like any other kid, hated the heavy coats and getting a zipper jammed into my chin. But I loved seeing the Michigan snowfall, finding maple sap sticky on the bark of trees, and making snow forts outside until the moisture seeped into our mittens and numbed our fingertips.

I have been back in colder climate after a good decade in the South (with a stint in the middle back in the Midwest). I have braved the NYC cold and leapt over giant slushy puddles at intersections for thirteen years. Where does the time go?

The books Wintering by Katherine May and Calm Christmas by Beth Kempton really shifted my perspective toward the magic of the season again. (I am sure marrying someone from a frigid climate helped, as well). When winter arrives, I like to read books that romanticize the season. Books that remind me we can thrive differently and have permission to change with the seasons.

I currently want to go buy tinsel and make a foamy latte. It’s a season that invites us to change pace. The deep darkness invites us to shelter, to move slowly, to pause.

Ironically, I think it has the opposite effect on Russians. We walked through NYC during the 18F, and most of the people who braved the weather and were out and about were Russian. They seem to come alive in this weather.

I saw something recently that made me smile— it said something like “If you put away your phone, you’ll realize it’s still 2007. The mountains haven’t moved. The snow is still piled high.” I think if we slow down and pay attention to the nature in this season, we will be filled with much delight. Removing distractions can help us see what hasn’t changed.

(If you don’t know where to start— start here: How to Actually Look Forward to Winter, an interview with Kari Leibowitz, author of How to Winter. If you have no headphones, read it here).

Short days. Long nights. Deep darkness. Lights sparkle bright.

Permission to winter (as Suzy Reading says) activated!