I had always wanted to go to New York City, ever since I was a kid. I’ve always loved musicals and theater and would think how great it would be to get to see a show on Broadway. But money was always a problem, and I always figured I wouldn’t be able to afford a trip to NYC until I was much older. I was a reading a Sylvia Browne book one day, and she was talking about letters to the universe. Like The Secret (which I read afterwards) the idea was to write down your goals on a piece of paper, think positively and release your wish to the universe (and not dwell on it 24/7). So I wrote a note to God that read “New York, New York, that’s where I want to be. And let it be cheap or possibly free.” I thought of how wonderful it would be to visit NYC, I could even picture it in my head. I put the note under my bed and soon forgot about it.

A few months later, my mom called. She has a penpal in England she has been writing to since she was 12. Her penpal Jayne and her have know each other for over 30 years. Jayne was going to be going to New York for the US Open Tennis Tournament. My mom emailed Jayne and told her if she was going to be in New York, that she would fly down and visit for a few days. Then my mom asked me if I would want to come along. I of course said yes, but nothing was final. Jayne emailed back when she was going. Soon we were booking flights and hotels. We got tickets to go see Hairspray too (I told my mom the only thing I had to do was see a musical). My mom told me she’d pay for the flights (through a frequent flyer program). I was getting ready to save money for the hotel and show, but then she said she’d cover that too. So my dream trip came true. I got to go to New York for 5 days, and it didn’t put me in debt. My mom also got to meet Jayne and they hit it off right away. Even though it was short, my trip to NYC was amazing and I know I’ll be back again.