Flick user OhWhataChristyLast week I spent a lot of time with my two nieces, Lorelei and Aubree, who are 3 and 1 respectively. Lorelei has a new-found obsession with the original Mary Poppins movie. She watches it with such intensity, and then sings the songs and mimics all of the movements. Her laser beam focus, which she’s had since she was a baby, is something to behold. I always wonder exactly what she’s thinking as she observes so keenly.
We were out in front of her house last week, drawing chalk pictures on the drive way and playing with her fancy umbrella and tricycle.
She turned to me and said, “Nan (that’s her nickname for me), can you help me get up there?”
“Where, Lorelei?” I asked her
She pointed at the sky. “Up there. Way up there. Like Mary Poppins.”
“Honey, I don’t know how to fly like Mary Poppins.”
“How does she do that? I want to do that. It looks fun.”
“I’m sure it is fun,” I said and I thought about how great that would be to just grab an umbrella and get where I want to go. My commute to work would be so much better.
While we may view that movie as filled with lots of things that can’t happen – floating up to the ceiling by laughing, taking adventures through chalk drawings, and using carousel horses to race – Lorelei doesn’t see any of that as impossible. She’s at the age when she can dream anything into fruition. I hope she never loses that sense of wonder and belief in herself. I do hope she becomes a Mary Poppins in her own right.
It was such an awesome moment with her in front of her house. I’m sure I’ll remember it all my life and recount it to her when she’s older. My guess is that there will always be a part of Lorelei who believes that anything is possible. And she helps me to keep that perspective, too. She reminds me that our imaginations are amazing and magical playgrounds. No wonder it’s my favorite place to go.
“Someday,” Lorelei said, “I’m going to fly like Mary Poppins.” And I’m sure she will.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
4 thoughts on “Beginning: My Niece’s Quest to be Mary Poppins”
Lorelei indeed has a very keen imagination, and also a very keen insight. We were watching the movie “Up” and when the older lady passes on, she asked me “are you old, Grammy?” Trying quickly to understand her concern and allay any fears, I responded – “not too old yet, honey”. Her mom says she is thinking and thankfully talking about her thoughts a lot lately. I may be prejudiced, but she seems to be very mature for her mere 3 years.She was satisfied with the simple answer, and that is according to experts the best way to handle deep questions from the very young – they don’t need or want long explanations. She then skipped on to something else. Little Aubree seems to be developing just as quickly and though she can’t express herself in words we understand yet, she makes her meaning clear and her character and personality are emerging – often in a mirror image of Lorelei’s example and affection for her. She now makes a funny face in exact replication of Lorelei’s when she says “huh?” – and the reaction is appropriate to the occasion as well. It really cracks me up. I am happy that they both have keen senses of humor. That goes a long way in managing life itself.
I feel delighted. You made my day. How poetic. How nice of you.
I think toddlers/babies are great. Then again, I am partial to kids.
Kids remind you of what you have lost. We adults tend toward pragmatism. By contrast, children are natural dreamers.
They live in la-la land: it is a delightful world of make-believe. Children believe that anything is possible–they have beautiful minds.
We fail to appreciate this because our lives have been invaded by realism and not imagination. As adults, we tend toward materialism too.
I am amazed whenever I see children watching Casper the friendly ghost and scooby-doo and Sesame Street on TV. Your niece is a miracle and she is a priceless treasure. How adorable to be that age. Cheers.
I agree, Archan. And there are so many ways to have kids in our lives. I’m so blessed to have my little nieces. They’re always teaching me something new and reminding me just how wonderful life is.
Lorelei indeed has a very keen imagination, and also a very keen insight. We were watching the movie “Up” and when the older lady passes on, she asked me “are you old, Grammy?” Trying quickly to understand her concern and allay any fears, I responded – “not too old yet, honey”. Her mom says she is thinking and thankfully talking about her thoughts a lot lately. I may be prejudiced, but she seems to be very mature for her mere 3 years.She was satisfied with the simple answer, and that is according to experts the best way to handle deep questions from the very young – they don’t need or want long explanations. She then skipped on to something else. Little Aubree seems to be developing just as quickly and though she can’t express herself in words we understand yet, she makes her meaning clear and her character and personality are emerging – often in a mirror image of Lorelei’s example and affection for her. She now makes a funny face in exact replication of Lorelei’s when she says “huh?” – and the reaction is appropriate to the occasion as well. It really cracks me up. I am happy that they both have keen senses of humor. That goes a long way in managing life itself.
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She is wise beyond her years. I am so excited to see how her life unfolds. I’m sure it will be extraordinary.
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Christa:
I feel delighted. You made my day. How poetic. How nice of you.
I think toddlers/babies are great. Then again, I am partial to kids.
Kids remind you of what you have lost. We adults tend toward pragmatism. By contrast, children are natural dreamers.
They live in la-la land: it is a delightful world of make-believe. Children believe that anything is possible–they have beautiful minds.
We fail to appreciate this because our lives have been invaded by realism and not imagination. As adults, we tend toward materialism too.
I am amazed whenever I see children watching Casper the friendly ghost and scooby-doo and Sesame Street on TV. Your niece is a miracle and she is a priceless treasure. How adorable to be that age. Cheers.
LikeLike
I agree, Archan. And there are so many ways to have kids in our lives. I’m so blessed to have my little nieces. They’re always teaching me something new and reminding me just how wonderful life is.
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