Last month marked twenty years since I first stepped foot in New York City.
I still remember walking out of the airport for the first time and feeling an unexpected sense of peace, mixed with excitement but, strangely, not nerves. Just a quiet feeling that I was exactly where I was supposed to be. At the time, I could not have imagined that this city would still be part of my life two decades later, or how deeply it would shape the woman I would become.
The Many Lives Within One City
When I look back, it truly feels like I’ve lived several lives here.
I came to New York chasing a dream. Dance was the reason, the anchor, the entry point. Like many before me, I arrived with ambition, curiosity, and a willingness to try. What followed was not a straight line, but a series of chapters that unfolded one after another, sometimes intentionally, sometimes unexpectedly. Looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing. Each step led me to where I am today.
There were seasons of creative pursuit, seasons of building and running businesses, seasons of returning to corporate structure and climbing the corporate ladder, and eventually, finding my way back to entrepreneurship again. Each chapter taught me something different about resilience, discipline, and trust. New York did not hand me anything easily, but it offered space to grow into myself and explore the many paths that led me to who I am meant to be.
What Stayed When Everything Else Shifted
Over the years, my relationship with the city evolved. The New York I knew in my early twenties is not the New York I know now, and neither am I the same person. As I changed and evolved, some dreams were fully lived out, others dreams shifted, while new ones emerged.
What remained constant were the relationships built along the way. This is the city where I met the love of my life and got married. Where friendships turned into chosen and God-given family. Where community did not always come quickly, but once formed, became deeply rooted.
And perhaps most importantly, this is the city where I discovered my faith and fell in love with Jesus. That part of my journey was not loud or immediate. It unfolded gently, through life experiences, questions, and moments that slowly pointed me toward something deeper. In a city known for its pace and ambition, faith became my grounding force.
A City That Owes Me Nothing
There is a phrase that comes to mind when I think about New York now. This city owes me absolutely nothing.
It gave me the opportunity to live fully. To try. To fail. To rebuild. To love. To believe. To become.
I do not know what the future holds or whether the next chapters of my life will continue here. What I do know is that this journey, with all its highs and lows, has truly been a gift.
“I’ve lived several lives in this city,
and each one shaped who I was becoming.”
Looking Ahead With Gratitude
Twenty years later, I am still walking these streets with appreciation. Sometimes I still get butterflies in my stomach seeing backdrops I only knew from television as a kid. I still have those pinch-me moments when I pause and take the time to look up at the skyscrapers. Not everything worked out the way I imagined years ago, but this city allowed me to grow in ways I never anticipated.
If there is one thing New York taught me, it is that life does not need to be fully mapped out to be meaningful. Sometimes, staying open is enough.
As the landscape continues to change, I can’t say with certainty that this city, or even this country, is where the next twenty years will unfold. What I do know is that I trust God for guidance, wherever that path leads.
Une aventure que je n’aurais jamais imaginée 🤍
— Catt
