Noel

Noel

@nocturnosumarian

“What I really love about my job is that I am able to pass on what I have learned through life. I am not talking about barbering, I am talking about life.”

“I came to New York December, 1993. I got out of the airport and saw this Christmas tree. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. You could light up my entire neighborhood in the Dominican Republic with the lights from that one tree. My father, who already lived here, met me at the airport and we drove straight to the city. I remember I was looking out the window around 42nd street and this girl in a Santa outfit just flashed her boobs. I was like, ‘Wow! Ok. This is New York!’”

“When I first moved here, I was depressed. I didn’t speak English and I was bullied at school. When I was 16, I got addicted to cocaine and by the time I was 21, I was gone. I wouldn’t think about eating, taking a shower, getting a job or anything. I was only focused on getting drugs. I was homeless for three years.”

“One day, I saw my dad on the street and I wanted to say hi to him but I was too embarrassed because of the way I looked. I started crying. Around the block I met this woman I knew. I told her what had happened and she invited me to stay in her house. She told me it was time for me to get myself together. That was the moment I decided to change. She saved my life. She had two daughters and a grandchild and she still took me under her wings. There’s no way I can pay back what she did for me.”

“If I had still been living in the Dominican Republic while battling my addiction, nobody would have helped me, not even my own family. Here, I got help from people who didn’t even know me. My community helped me so much, so I feel I have to give back.”

“I was raised by my grandma, so I am always ‘on top’ of the guys about how to speak to women. Just because you live in the hood doesn’t mean you are going to ‘be hood’. ‘Hey, what’s up Mami?’ Not everybody likes that.”

“I cut guys that are trying to be tough, guys that are humble, queer guys, gang members in the area, guys that you don’t want to mess with. Let me tell you, these guys are very picky when it comes to the way they look. They don’t play with that.”

“I love living in Harlem. We got Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Brazilians, Italians, Arabs, everyone. I think it should be like that everywhere. I feel like Harlem represents New York in a sense. It was created so everyone can feel free.”

“I am not afraid here. In the Dominican Republic, even if I hadn’t done anything wrong, anytime I saw the police, I was scared. We are two blocks away from heaven here. The safety and the freedom here sold me. A lot of stuff has happened to me, but when I see what life can be like other places in the world, I realize my struggles do not compare.”

“There are places where you are judged by your skin color, where they look at you in a funny way for being different. But not in New York. The freedom is what makes me love this city so much.”

Q&A

What neighborhood do you live in? Hamilton Heights.

Best thing about living there? The diversity of races.

Favorite neighborhood? Where I live. There’s too much drama in other places. Not that this is a piece of cake, but it’s better than other places.

Favorite street to stroll? Bradhurst Ave.

Why? Because of Jackie Robinson Park. It’s a tenblock park with everything. There’s a pool, playground, basketball, everything. Also I grew up there. It’s where I go to relax my mind.

Favorite restaurant? La Casa del Mofongo on Saint Nicholas and 183rd.

Favorite bar? Kennedy Sports Club on 151st and Broadway.

How to be(come) a New Yorker? First thing you need is to live here. But you need patience. You’re a real New Yorker when you don’t let minor things, like a delayed subway, bother you and ruin your day And you also need to get used to having no private space.

Your New York soundtrack? The ambulance sirens, for sure.

5 THINGS THAT TELL A STORY ABOUT NOEL

BRACELETS “This was a gift from the first friend that I made in the United States at this skate park. I couldn’t speak English and I couldn’t skate, and this guy approached me when no one else wanted to talk to me.”

NECKLACE “This is a gift from this guy. He woke me up gave me the slaps that I needed to get my life together. He told me that the same way that I learn from him, he also learns from me. The beauty of that is that we learned from each other. I wouldn’t be as good as I am now without him.”

CUTTING MACHINE “I was sleeping in parks for three years, and this helped me get out of there. Instead of selling drugs or trying to rob someone, this was my way out. I feel blessed to have found a living that I also love.”

BABY CLOTHES “January 29, 2009, my first son was stillborn. We bought this so he could be buried in it, but he was too small to fit the clothes. We spread his ashes in a park by a tree.”

SHELL “I love New York, but we’re slaves. Voluntary slaves, but we are. I work constantly without treating myself. I decided to spend a little bit of money on myself, and bought this. It’s a reminder of how important it is to care for yourself.”