Humans of New York: Stories

People watching is something everyone has indulge in at one time or another. It is a very easy thing to do, and most of us do it without realizing. Social media has definitely magnified the ability to showcase photos from this innocent form of stalking. For example, on Instagram I follow a Seattleite that takes black and white photography of people on his morning bus commute. When his photos appear on my newsfeed, I instantly begin guessing what that person does for a job, where they are going, what their favorite flavor of cupcake is, and what caffeine beverage they would order.

A few years ago, I began following Humans of New York (HONY) on Facebook. A photographer (Brandon Stanton) initially set out to just photograph 10,000 New Yorkers. However, it progressed into him taking photos of strangers, and then also getting short stories and quotes from these New Yorkers. Millions of people go to the HONY website daily, and now there is a published book Humans of New York: Stories. I have recently finished it; and I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes and photos from Brandon Stanton's newest book.

I see something in animals that I don’t see in humans. They have a focus and energy that humans don’t have. They just want to live. They aren’t trying to impress anyone. They aren’t trying to hurt anyone for no reason. Even the rat you see in the subway—his only thought is finding the food he needs to survive. Animals only want to live. It’s humans that demand more than they need.

The amplitudes of life get smaller as you age. There are less and less things to experience for the first time. And each time you experience something, you don’t get quite as excited. But you don’t get quite as hurt, either. I wonder what it will feel like when I’m seventy…

“I feel stuck.”
“What’s keeping you stuck, exactly?”
“If I knew that, I’d be unstuck.”

I wish I’d partied a little less. People always say: ‘Be true to yourself.’ But that’s misleading because there are two selves. There’s your short-term self, and there’s your long-term self. And if you’re only true to your short-term self, your long-term self slowly decays.

I tend to be cynical about a lot of things, but Maya Angelou is somebody that no matter how much I pick her apart, she still has integrity. She was a victim of incest and rape, and she worked as a stripper. And now she’s a literary icon and Nobel laureate. It goes to show that life is cumulative, and you can’t devalue any type of experience.

“Who’s influenced you the most in your life?”

“My principal, Ms. Lopez. When we get in trouble, she doesn’t suspend us. She calls us to her office and explains to us how society was built down around us. And she tell us that each time somebody fails out of school, a new jail cell gets built. And one time she made every student stand up, one at a time, and she told each one of us that we matter.”

“What’s been your greatest accomplishment?”

“Keeping in touch with distant friends and relatives.”
“Why is that important?”
“It’s important to always have people who remember you at various stages of your life. It’s especially important as you get older, because there are less of those people around. And they remind you who you are.”

My sister taught me how to ask for money from my parents. First you give them a compliment. Then you talk about your day. Then you tell them about your grades. Then you ask for money.

“What do you feel most guilty about?”

“All the people I drift away from.”

His grandmother and I are raising him. I worry about putting him into the public school system. I was a teacher for many years. I’ve seen so much confidence destroyed by the standardization system. Every human is born with natural curiosity. I’ve never seen a child who wasn’t inspired. But once you force someone to do anything, the inspired person is killed. I dropped out of school myself in seventh grade. So I know. I taught a GED course for years, so I’ve seen the end results over and over. I’ve seen so many kids who have complexes and insecurities because they were forced to do something they weren’t ready to do, and then they were blamed when they weren’t able to do it. What we call ‘education’ today is not organic. You can’t take something as complex as the human mind, compartmentalize it, and regiment its development so strictly.

The great thing about New York is that if you sit in one place long enough, the whole world comes to you.

What’s the biggest crime you’ve ever committed?

I’ve never been a constant in anyone’s life.

I’ve been working for forty-five years, and so has my wife. But we have no money. You know why? Because my five kids have two bachelor’s, a master’s, and two doctorate degrees. They are my wealth.

Were I to dream

then dream I would
of days that have gone by.

Your eyes would gleam

and so would mine,
but joys remembered are no longer mine.

I walk in a garden of memory,

reliving the joys and the sorrows as well.
I walked with a cane down memory lane.
Perhaps there, joys remembered will remain.

Perhaps when my hair has turned to gray

and my face is etched with pain,
I’ll walk with a cane down memory lane.
Perhaps there, joys remembered will remain.

I tell my daughters they need a college education so that they can have a career, and not a job. Because I’ve got two jobs, and they still don’t add up to a career.”

I’m a philosophy professor. I tell my students ‘never make an exception of yourself.’ People like to make exceptions for themselves. They hold other people to moral codes that they aren’t willing to follow themselves. For example, people tend to think that if they tell a lie, it’s because it was absolutely necessary. But if someone else tells a lie, it means they’re dishonest. So never make an exception of yourself. If you’re a thief, don’t complain about being robbed.

“We’re eye doctors.”

“What’s something about the eye that most people don’t realize?”
“The eye doesn’t see. The brain sees. The eye just transmits. So what we see isn’t only determined by what comes through the eyes. What we see is affected by our memories, our feelings, and by what we’ve seen before.”

“I’m finding out that being an adult is a lot more than learning how to cook.”

 “He likes to take the lead, so I’ve learned to lead more quietly.”