Trust

"Stop moving your nose."

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Alison reminded me of Elizabeth Montgomery playing Samantha on Bewitched. When I rubbed sun tan lotion on her nose, Alison's head would keep still, but her nose would take off like a whirly bird. I'd stretch the ritual out so I could watch her make a thousand faces.

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One of our favorite games was "Trust." She'd run the length of the couch and dive off like Wile E. Coyote. I'd be on the floor and the deal was I'd catch her as close to the ground as possible without her crashing. She'd take off like a madman and go up four, five feet in the air, trying to go past my arms, daring me to drop her. Lots of close calls, but no emergency room visits. Nothing compares to the powerful faith Alison had in me during that game.

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Today, Alison worked Elixir Juice Bar, a smoothie store on Hudson Street. I biked there to visit her. The place got busy. For 45 minutes, I read & watched Alison handle the best and worst of New York. She ran the place working alone. No sweat, no scenes, just satisfied customers.

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