Walking with Little Amal

Photo: Todd Heisler

In today's NY Times:

....Amal led a procession up Central Park West. As her band played, we trooped along in the street — grown-ups, little kids riding on shoulders, the occasional dog. The mood was buoyant, happy, kind.

There is something to be said for what is, in effect, a citywide party in honor of a refugee — even if she is merely a puppet, even if she is so well-connected that St. Ann’s Warehouse helped to bring her here. Symbolic behavior matters.

Up ahead, Amal’s long brown hair swayed in the breeze, adorned with a bright red ribbon that was a beacon for those farther back....

The creepiest thing about that evening’s walk, though, was the sense that allegiance had been replaced by pursuit. It had the feeling of a hunt, with the puppet refugee as quarry. People jostled for position, cut in front of one another, tried to anticipate where Amal was going and get there first.

And so I wonder, a little worriedly, with Saturday’s walk across the Brooklyn Bridge coming right up: Are we ruining Little Amal for ourselves?

There may be no solution to the problem of the sheer numbers she draws, especially when the vistas promise to be breathtaking. 

But one tenet of theater suggests a way to better experience her live: Be present. Shoot a few photos if you like, a snippet of video. 

But mostly, just put down your camera, put away your phone. Be there, in the moment, walking with her. And feel.