““I must have a prodigious amount of mind; it takes me as much as a week, sometimes, to make it up!” ”

— Mark Twain

25 x 25 (Five Decisions I Made)

July 30, 2018 in Reflections

2017 took me to Houston to visit a first cousin once-removed where I saw pictures, family bibles, and heirlooms some dating back to the mid 19th century. I trekked down to the Georgia Archives where I discovered a 3x great-grandfather who went from being a slave in Cobb County to a landowner shortly after emancipation. And, in May, I flew to San Diego where I filled in many missing 'leaves' from my dad's side of the tree.

““The discovery of a new dish does more for the happiness of the human race than the discovery of a star.””

— Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

25 x 25 (Five New Foods I Tried)

July 23, 2018 in Reflections, Travel, Food & Drink

After a lot of face pulling and squirming, I gave in to my host mom's cajoling and to my surprise, quite enjoyed my first taste of the popular shellfish; so much so that I ordered it no less than five additional times during my trip.

““Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.””

— Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky

25 x 25 (Five Cities I Visited)

July 16, 2018 in Reflections, Travel

My 24th year took me to Europe for the first time! But I also did some exploring on this side of the Atlantic making trips from D.C. to Boston to Nashville to Los Angeles.

““Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes but when you look back everything is different?” ”

— C.S. Lewis

25 x 25 (Five Books I Read)

July 09, 2018 in Reflections

My last several birthdays have occurred at pivotal moments of change in my life. My 21st birthday took place a few months before I moved to Boston to start graduate school. My 22nd birthday took place in Ghana where I was completing an internship.

““Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think. It’s splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.””

— L. M. Montgomery

Elegy for a Friend

July 01, 2018 in Reflections

“What does it take to write a book?” I asked. It was the Summer of 2015 and I had just moved in to the Brookline basement of 27 Monmouth Court a few weeks prior. I felt obliged and curious to ask given that one of the few things I knew about the man sitting across from me was that he was the author of 18 books.