A Jog Around Central Park

I rushed out of the 110th Street subway station right at 7:17 am this Saturday, on my way to meet up with some friends to jog ???? around the iconic Central Park.

To my delight, my dear friend Alicia was already at the meetup spot, warming up for our five-mile run, so of course, I joined her.

As we both were stretching, Alicia asked me out of the blue, "Anthony, what are you going journal about and post on your LinkedIn feed later this morning?" Surprised by this question, I chuckled for a moment and then responded that I had no idea. Lol!

After that funny exchange, I turned to my left, and lo and behold, I spotted the Frederick Douglass statue, which sparked a creative thought! And, just like that, I knew what I wanted to journal about this morning.

As a result, I told Alicia that I would periodically pause our run to take photos of some of the many beautiful statues scattered around Central Park and capture my thoughts of the experience on the train ride home.

• The Frederick Douglass Memorial is a memorial commemorating Frederick Douglass, installed at the northwest corner of New York City's Central Park.

Now with the entire group assembled, I took a minute to review the jogging route with everyone, and then we took off running. Let's go!?????

I ended up making seven stops along the way to examine some impressive-looking statues en route to the Central Park Columbus Circle exit.

For your viewing pleasure, the following is a collection of the best shots I took with my iPhone 13. Also, I included information about each statue, which is cited directly from CentralParkNYC.org.

• Women's Rights Pioneers Monument: The first monument to be added to the Park since 1965 honors the trailblazing work of pioneering women's rights advocates Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

On the north side of Grand Army Plaza is a towering monument to William Tecumseh Sherman by the American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

The monument depicts Sherman on his horse, Ontario, led by the allegorical figure of Victory. The model for “Victory” was an African-American woman named Hettie Anderson who worked as a model for many of the era's most prominent painters and sculptors. The figure of Victory is depicted crushing a palm frond, a symbol of the south, in her hand as she leads Sherman to Union victory.

The monument to William Shakespeare is located at the southern end of the Mall, in the section known as "Literary Walk" because of the numerous statues of writers.

Wrapped up in a passionate embrace, the bronze figures of?Romeo and Juliet?stand in front of the Delacorte Theater, home of the annual summer theater festival, Shakespeare in the Park.

The memorial to American composer, pianist, and jazz orchestra leader Duke Ellington is located just beyond the northeast corner of the Park. At a heroic scale, Ellington stands over 10-feet high next to a grand piano on a platform supported by three columns.

The monument to Christopher Columbus by the Spanish artist Jeronimo Su?ol is one of several monuments to historical figures located along the Mall.

On a rocky outcrop just east of Willowdale Arch stands a memorial to the Siberian husky dog, Balto, one of the most beloved monuments in Central Park.

Closing Thoughts

Well, friends, I trust you enjoyed jogging around Central Park with me on this windy Saturday in February in New York City.

I will end this article with a question... Which was your favorite photo? ??

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