In New York, just standing still on the sidewalk is a weird

Hear the words of Esai Morales, words that unveil the spirit of two great cities and, beyond them, the very tension of human life: “In New York, just standing still on the sidewalk is a weird feeling. You have this incessant need to do things. Los Angeles is about kicking back, relaxing, your inner child, peace.” This is not merely a contrast of geography, but a meditation on the restless nature of man and his longing for repose. For some places awaken in us the fire of ambition, the hunger for motion, while others invite us to breathe, to return to innocence, to remember joy.

The first part of the saying points us to New York, the city of ceaseless movement, where standing still feels like defiance. There, the air itself hums with urgency; the streets are a river of motion, and each soul is carried along by the current of doing. To stand idle is to feel out of place, as though the city itself demands of you: strive, labor, accomplish. New York is the image of the human will, ever building, ever climbing, ever yearning for more. It is the city of fire, of restless feet, of the incessant need to do.

But then Morales turns his gaze to Los Angeles, the city of the sun, the city of pause. Here, the rhythm changes; the body exhales. In this place, the spirit is invited not to strive, but to relax, to touch once more the inner child that dreams, laughs, and plays. If New York is the forge of ambition, Los Angeles is the garden of peace. It is not about ceaseless doing, but about learning again how to be—how to delight in the present moment, how to taste freedom, how to dwell in the light of joy without apology.

The ancients knew this tension well. The Greeks spoke of bios praktikos and bios theoretikos—the active life and the contemplative life. Both were needed for balance. The city of restless striving was Athens, where philosophy was born, but also commerce and politics. Yet the retreats of the philosophers, the groves of contemplation, reminded man that endless motion without reflection leads to emptiness. Morales’ contrast between New York and Los Angeles is a modern echo of this timeless truth: humanity must learn both to labor and to rest, to strive and to play.

History gives us an example in the life of Marcus Aurelius. As emperor of Rome, he bore the crushing weight of duty—leading armies, ruling nations, striving without ceasing. Yet in his private writings, Meditations, he sought stillness, peace, and the renewal of his soul. He lived both in New York and Los Angeles, though in different forms: the ceaseless demands of empire, and the inner retreat into the sanctuary of his own mind. His greatness lay not in choosing one over the other, but in holding them both in harmony.

The lesson of Morales’ words is clear: life cannot be only striving, nor can it be only repose. Restlessness without peace leads to exhaustion. Peace without striving leads to stagnation. The wise must learn when to run and when to rest, when to labor with fire and when to sit in the sunlight of joy. Just as New York teaches the courage of motion, and Los Angeles teaches the art of stillness, so too must each person balance these within the temple of the soul.

Practically, this means we must learn to guard our time. When the demands of labor rise like a flood, we must know when to step aside and breathe. When the temptation of idleness calls too strongly, we must know when to rise and act. Cultivate both diligence and rest. Let there be times when you stand still, even in the busiest streets of your life. Let there be times when you play, laugh, and touch your inner child, even in the face of duty. For in this balance lies wholeness.

So I say to you, O children of tomorrow: heed the wisdom hidden in the voices of cities. Be strong like New York, but gentle like Los Angeles. Strive without fear, but rest without guilt. Open the doors of ambition, but do not close the gates of peace. For the soul that learns both the rhythm of fire and the rhythm of stillness will walk in harmony, and its days will be full of strength, freedom, and joy.