By Joseph Morales

It is an 80-degree summer day in Bayside, Queens, and 16-year old Christina Kramer is waiting for a train at the Bayside LIRR Station. These days were her favorites, warm enough to catch summer vibes but cool enough not to melt away in the Northeast humidity. She really enjoyed taking public transportation since it gave her a chance to explore communities more personally. Specifically, Christina felt like walking and being in a public vehicle allowed her to see and hear more than she could in the metal box of a vehicle. She absolutely adored the freedom transit gave her when she lived in Downtown Brooklyn. There, the number of subway lines available made her feel like she lived in an international airport with flights to different parts of the city instead of different continents. Christina would take countless adventures going practically anywhere. This included the electric zoo of Times Square, the cosmopolitan streets of Jackson Heights and so many other places.

A few months ago, she moved with her family to Bayside since her mom and dad wanted more space and most importantly, the ability to get around freely by car. They were tired of needing to get through overstimulating stations and pack onto crowded trains to get anywhere outside of their neighborhood. While the parents loved the convenience of having every chain retailer imaginable steps from their apartment, they wanted to live outside of a bubble in what they saw as a less sterile and insular environment. They considered numerous Staten Island and Eastern Queens neighborhoods but landed on Bayside so that Christina could still have a reasonable commute to school at Manhattan School of the Arts.

Today, Christina was going to hang out with some friends from school at the Queens Museum. Christina is waiting patiently, upset that the trains are less frequent than in Brooklyn, but grateful she still has access to some semblance of urban transportation. She has taken the train here for a while now so she has started to get used to it. A few minutes later, another teen approaches her casually.

“Hey, you look familiar”, the girl says gently wagging her finger towards Christina as she speaks.

Freaked out, Christina walks quickly to the other end of the platform and underneath the shaded canopy. She knew not to talk to anyone on the train as people who spoke to others on trains were seen as highly suspicious. Christina figured that the girl was either going to ask for money or try to harm her in one way or the other. Eventually, the train arrives and she gets on it without thinking too much of the girl who approached her.

The ride to the Queens Museum is a quick one. She passes through a few residential neighborhoods and over a couple commercial areas, most notably Downtown Flushing. Christina then gets off the train and exits onto a bridge into the vast Flushing Meadows Corona Park. She sees her friends, Clint, Amy and Jack at the base of the bridge just before all the “streets” of the park split off from the walkway. Everyone greets Christina and daps her up before proceeding down the Avenue of the Americas to the Museum.

They always enjoyed walking down the avenue and seeing a few art installations along with the world famous Unisphere. However, nothing beat the feeling of being in the museum. Christina and the rest of the clique had a strong passion for going into an exhibit and analyzing the intentions behind the pieces curators chose for their collections. It also made them feel more classy and sophisticated, something they all took a lot of pride in.

The group started at an exhibit in the Rudin Gallery that included renderings and architectural plans for the Panorama, a model-based replica of New York City. They examined the artifacts and debated the motives behind many of the documenting design decisions. As they were talking, a 10 year old playing tag with his friend accidentally bumped into Amy.

“Hey, watch it, little twerp!” Amy yelled.

Tears started to fall down the kid’s eyes as he ran towards his sister. The rest of the group laughed and felt as if Amy justly humiliated the boy.

“Who did that brat think he was?” Christina said.

“Yeah, it’s a museum, not a kids playground, ” Jack added.

The kid was standing vulnerable next to his sister and he pointed towards the group. Nonetheless, the group went about their business and eventually went to other exhibits including The Panorama itself. They continued their moving talk show for a couple hours before calling it a day and going to get lunch and dessert at the Unisphere Cafe.

After lunch, it was time for everyone to head home. Christina was fortunate that the train came faster this time and she was home roughly 15 minutes after she left the group at the Mets-Willetts Point LIRR station. She enters her house on 215th St and her parents are sitting in the living room near the doorway. They do not look happy.

“Christina, we need to have a serious conversation,” Mom says.

Christina approaches the living room confused and nervous about what her parents might discuss.

“Me and your mother have been talking, and we feel like you spend too much money and act really entitled.” Dad explains.

“Yes, and those friends of yours are really entitled too.” Mom adds.

Christina is curious why she is hearing all of this now. She feels like she didn’t do a lot considering she just went to the museum for free and had a regular day with friends.

“How am I being entitled?” Christina asks.

“You go on all these outings, you act like you and your friends are the only people in the world, and you haven’t worked a day in your life!” Mom says.

“But we didn’t even have to pay for the museum!” Christina barks.

“Watch your tone young lady. That’s exactly what we mean. The museum is pay as you wish and you didn’t contribute anything. That’s entitlement. You focused on your desires and had no consideration for what it costs to run a museum.” Mom lectured.

Dad then explained that they want to get Christina to get some sort of job in order to learn about responsibility and the value of money. Both parents have stable jobs, with Mom being an accountant at JetBlue’s corporate office and Dad being an electrician at the Barclays Center. They are generally able to afford most of the things Christina wants but it is not easy. Dad constantly works overtime and double shifts while Mom always has to be on top of all of JetBlue’s fiscal crises to ensure they can sustain their lifestyle. It didn’t help when Christina saw the wealthier teens in Downtown Brooklyn and felt she deserved better, not thinking about how much better she had it than many others in the community.

Christina reluctantly marched towards her bedroom and went to her computer to start the job search. She was feeling pessimistic about it because of how tough she heard the job market for teens was. Many people she knew had applied to more than twenty jobs and got ghosted from all of them. The headlines would discourage anyone, with the TODAY Show YouTube channel posting a video titled “Where are the Summer Jobs for Teens? Options Near Historic Low”. Having heard how ATS application systems work, she knew she had to tailor her resume to get through those scanners.

Christina didn’t have much work experience. She had helped her dad to cook and do some household chores but that was about it. Christina was a core member of the Museum Club at school, but she basically just visited museums with them. She occasionally arranged trips and service projects, so she emphasized that on her resume hoping they would mean something.

The next few days after Christina submitted job applications were boring. Her application list consisted of every chain retailer and restaurant imaginable. Practically every store in the Skyview Center, Queens Center and Green Acres Mall should know who Christina Kramer is at this point. She was staying home, since her parents imposed a spending limit and curfew following her Queens Museum trip. Christina ultimately decided to walk a few blocks to Crocheron Park to clear her mind a bit. On the walk, she ran into a familiar face who asked a perplexing question.

“Hey, are you looking for a job”? The girl said.

Christina was stunned, it was the girl from the LIRR platform. How did she know Christina was looking for a job? Who was she?

“Who are you?” Christina asks in a shocked tone.

“I’m Caroline, I live a few blocks away. I know a lot of people at Eastern Queens High School want to work this summer. I saw you on the train platform, and I figured you might be looking for one too, so I wanted to reach out.”

“How can you help?” Christina said nervously.

“I am an intern at the Bayside Village Business Improvement District, and I know all of the store owners on Bell Blvd. I am sure I can get you a position at some place that needs help.”

“But what if I don’t have experience?” Christina questioned.

“That’s fine! The store owners on Bell Blvd love to help young teens get their careers started.” Caroline said.

Christina felt guilty. She had resented Caroline on the train platform because she thought Caroline was a threat. In reality, Caroline treated her like a friend even though she didn’t know her.

Caroline took Christina to Bell Blvd. It is just like many commercial strips in NYC, with a plethora of independent stores and restaurants lining the street. She walked her towards a small furniture store called Bayside Furniture and introduced her to the owner.

The manager, Ms. White, was looking for a staff to help her sell some of the furniture in the store. Being a small business owner, it was hard to find people with furniture or interior design know-how who could help sell products. She was in a race against time in order to be able to compete with nearby chain retailers including the large HomeGoods in Bay Terrace. Ms. White wanted to try something out of the box to help customers make more purchases. She felt like Christina with her knowledge of the arts would be a great fit. While she didn’t have the furniture-specific know how the salespeople at bigger stores do, Ms. White was confident enough she could be of use.

Ms. White was thrilled after the introduction. Christina asked Caroline, this time with a smile, “How did you know I was artsy?”

“Well, I saw your colorful clothes and thrifted shorts, and figured you were a creative. That’s why I tried to approach you on the platform, because I knew Ms. White was looking for someone like you.” Caroline replied.

Christina found it really special that someone saw her for her talents and directly offered her an opportunity. Living in Downtown Brooklyn, she saw people working for larger businesses and thought that any job needed to be earned via an online application. She had no idea how networking and interacting with people could be even more beneficial. Christina also saw how people were so obviously antisocial on the subway and thought that it was always how it had to be. While she always explored other NYC neighborhoods, she never quite understood how they worked or the different ways that people did things.

Christina gave Caroline a huge bear hug and said, “Thank you so much.”

Caroline replied, “Of course, always trying to help.”

Christina was actually looking forward to working since she would be helping people using her unique skillset. She became an instant success, selling over 30 pieces and helping Ms. White to stay competitive. Not only that, but she was able to help people find pieces to fit a variety of goals. One family came in looking for a more modern furniture set to match local trends after moving back to New York from Pennsylvania. Another family came in for a curved shape that was safe given they had a 5-year old son.

Christina loved her job and the impact it had on people. She also ditched her old friend group in favor of Caroline, as her kindness showed her what it means to be a person who focuses on lifting people and communities up instead of putting them down. Caroline also inspired her to see things in different ways by directly introducing her to Ms. White and befriending her on mass transit. Perhaps she could connect with small business owners rather than mass apply to chain businesses online. Or, maybe she could interact with good people who talk to her on mass transit. She is really enjoying her new self.

Christina gets home from work one day and is feeling great after she helped a customer find a bedroom door that fit the aesthetic of their new home. Her parents want to have another conversation, and this time they seem happier than the first time.

“Hey Christina, me and your mother have noticed the changes you made lately and we want to tell you something.” Dad said.

“We have decided to lift your spending limit and curfew. You have earned it.” Mom added.

“Wow, thanks.” Christina replied.

Christina was happy her spending limit was lifted. However, she also loved her new personality and how it felt to earn stuff with her own money. A few days later she decided to invite Caroline on a trip to the Queens Museum. She decided to pay with $24 of her own money during her visit. This included $8 each for her and Caroline along with another $8 to support museum operations. They went to The Panorama and this time it looked a lot different to Christina. Last time, it seemed like a portrait of buildings drawn solely for public amusement. Now, she saw it as a symbol of the places people have built, valued and called home. Everything felt more human and to scale, and it left Christina looking forward to even more realizations to come.