Many would know of the singer, songwriter, musician and most importantly peace activist John Lennon who met an untimely demise at his front door by Central Park. Few, however might be aware of the quiet alcove carved out of Central Park’s oasis of green in his name. It still retains the honor of being one of the most visited sites in Central Park, hidden behind a veil of thick, leafy crowns between the 71st and 74th Streets. Drawn out in the shape of a poignant teardrop by landscape architect Bruce Kelley at the commissioning of John Lennon’s wife Yuko Ono, the 5.3 acre space rustles with the sound of elms dancing to the wind, interspersed by beds of flowers and shrubs. Visitors forget for a moment that they’re in fact within a stone’s throw of the loud and overwhelming streets of Manhattan.

Taking centre stage in this memorial is the IMAGINE mosaic, a circular arrangement of geometric patterns conceptualized by a team of Italian artists from Naples. Along with dozens of visitors that cross by the installation, take the chance to gift a flower, adding color to the monochrome statement. If you look slightly further, you should be able to spot a plaque of bronze. Etched into the metal is the commitment of 121 countries to the message and goal of the space, to work towards a land of peace without war and bloodshed. This has earned the Strawberry Fields the moniker of a Garden of Peace as well. Truly, few memorials best the Strawberry fields as a moving dedication left behind by a loving wife to continue her late husband’s courageous mission.