Hey, Philly, feel the love

By Liz Dow

Meandering down Broad Street clutching a handful of red envelopes to deposit in the mailbox, I looked up at City Hall and mused, "I love this city the way others love people."

Philadelphia's beauty can make my heart soar. I can sense its heartbeat and keep my finger on its pulse. This year, I'm sending a valentine to my city and some of the people who drive its success.

I love the mind, body, and spirit of this city, and the way its best leaders elevate us. For example:

Drexel President John Fry uplifts with his vision of the Innovation Neighborhood in University City.

Librarian of the Year Siobhan Reardon broadens our thinking as she breathes new life into the Free Library.

School District CEO William R. Hite Jr., KIPP's Marc Mannella, Mastery Charter's Scott Gordon, and committed teachers inspire us by fighting day after day to do what's right and keep hope alive for the children of Philadelphia.

The mind of the city has been enriched of late by a significant influx of millennials, with their fresh thinking, good intentions, and great energy. They raise the bar for all of us. Forbes, sensing this energy, honored us first by having Philadelphia host the 30 Under 30 Summit in October, and again by deciding it belonged here for good.

The body of this place keeps getting better - so much so that it was ranked third on the New York Times' "52 Places to Go in 2015." We have Paul Levy, president and CEO of the Center City District, to thank for the facelift of City Hall's Dilworth Park. And the pop-up gardens of Drew Becher, president of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, are exciting, inviting game-changers. This old city has become a hot prospect.

It's easy to respect the mind of the city that brought us democracy and to cherish the physical beauty we behold. What I treasure most, however, is the spirit of the City of Brotherly Love - the aspect that calls to the better angels of our nature. You can feel it in the air on a winning day for the Eagles at the Linc. It makes us proud when Mayor Nutter is recognized by Forbes as Public Servant of the Year and as Governing Magazine's top public official. His ethics upgrade alone does our hearts good.

The nation and the world have taken note of what's happening here.

When President Obama created the Task Force on 21st Century Policing, he chose our police commissioner, Charles Ramsey, to lead it because his career has demonstrated that all people matter.

When Pope Francis could have chosen anywhere in the world to host the 2015 World Meeting of Families, he picked Philadelphia, whose archbishop, Charles Chaput, has impressed us with an uncommon mix of humility, compassion, and business sense that is bringing the archdiocese into the 21st century.

An with the pick of major cities across the country, the Democrats chose Philadelphia for their national convention in 2016.

F. Scott Fitzgerald captured the essence of romance in his classic novel The Great Gatsby:

"It concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself, and assured you that it had precisely the impression of you that, at your best, you hoped to convey."

With such romance, you can see the city at its best. Philadelphia grows on you, like the kind of love that starts out as friendship. It's a love that invites us to be "all in." And if we were to take a vow to love it in the way it deserves, it would be the Athenian Oath, which - not surprisingly - our mayor had printed on his business cards.

Perhaps you would be willing to join in expressing your love for Philadelphia through the last line of that powerful vow:

"We will transmit this city not only not less, but greater and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us."