Brianna Geist ‘24 reflects on her experience watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
As folks at GA headed off to celebrate this year’s break, I got to enjoy a tradition with my family that I look forward to every year. Starting in 2007, before my first birthday, my family began a tradition of traveling to New York for Thanksgiving. Since then, I’ve had the best view of the annual Macy’s parade. Peter Brown’s apartment on Central Park West is on a low floor, almost eye to eye with the floats. Peter Brown was the band manager for the Beatles after owning a record store. He is family friends with my Aunt Paige Peterson, who lives in New York and illustrates books. Every year I watch the parade leaning out of his living room window or standing on his balcony, waving to the performers. It’s such a buzz to share this amazing tradition with my loved ones.
There’s been one change over the years: the restrictions of access to the floats. When I was little, I could sit on the floats and walk the street as the performers prepared — I felt like I was part of the action. As I grew older, I walked along the street inside of the three-foot barricades, photographing the floats, imagining myself as a VIP. In my pre-teen years, I watched as my aunt stood solo in the center of the street, fearlessly photographing the parade as cops and performers whizzed by. This year, eight-foot-high security fences lined the edge of the sidewalk. These additions to the parade security make me upset, as I always look forward to the parade and the new restrictions prevent the feeling of freedom and fun for the floats and performers. My aunt said that threats to the parade are what has increased the security, and the fences are to prevent people from jumping into the streets with the performers.
The traditional trip began this year with my aunt’s Thanksgiving Eve party. I slept over at her house and woke up to see through the window a Christmas tree surrounded by carolers and Santa’s sleigh on floats outside her apartment. As we walked to Peter’s apartment, I saw, close up, what the world watches on television: pops of color, music, dance, and all-around happiness. Then the parade started, and the dance troops and marching bands took off their silver foils and performed. As I look at the pictures I took, I’m reminded how lucky I’ve been to be immersed in these festivities. Count on this: I’ll be hanging out a window on Central Park West next Thanksgiving.
