New York Encounter 2026 | TRAILER | Where "Everything Is Waiting for You" (David Whyte)

FEB 13–15, 2026
METROPOLITAN PAVILION, 125 W. 18TH STREET, NEW YORK CITY
An annual three-day cultural event in the heart of New York City, offering opportunities for education, dialogue, and friendship. Free & Open to Everyone.

Change is in the air. For decades, many believed that universal well-being could be achieved just through economic growth, open borders, and technological innovation. Today, this belief is faltering. As a reaction, some have retreated into nationalism, rejecting free trade and immigration. Others have called for economic security and fairness. Still others have doubled down on technology to transform education and work.

It will take time to discern what is happening. Yet, in the uncertainty of the moment, one thing is becoming clear. In a world of isolated global consumers, a core aspect of being human is resurfacing: the deep need for places of belonging.

But not every place provides what our heart longs for.

We need a dwelling place, not a refuge, where life and the world are imbued with meaning, truth is sought, and forgiveness is experienced. A place where freedom thrives in friendship, not in autonomy; where identity is discovered, not fabricated; where dignity is a given, not a goal. When we find such a place, we grow in certainty and openness to others. It is like a true home, where everything is waiting for us.

“... the fire roars and the door stands open. There is bread and raiment, fire and water and all the crafts and mysteries of love. There is rest for heavy feet on the matted floor, and for starved heart in the pure faces, far away at the end of the world, in the house where I was born.”
— G. K. Chesterton

Join us February 13–15, 2026, for a weekend of public discussions, exhibits, and live performances to explore how life, freedom, and affection flourish in this type of belonging.

https://www.newyorkencounter.org