I was seventeen and class was being held outside, under the tall pines at Fort Miley near Land’s End, atop sharp cliffs overlooking the ocean. We sat in the shade of those trees, their dried needles creating a billowy cushion on which we formed a circle and discussed the day. She was upset, though that…
My parents collected wine for as long as I can remember. In the apartment I grew up in on Noe Street, they built a wine rack in the hall closet that could hold upwards of 80 bottles, though it was never full. When I got to that curious age of wondering what the fuss with…
“OMG it burns!” The pain shot up through my right nostril and landed squarely an inch above my right eye. I wiped the water off my face and with only my left eye open, peered around to see what was happening nearby. Sure enough, I was not alone. Others were having similar bad experiences to…
“I heard there was an incident,” I lead in gently. He was calm, lying back on his bed petting the cat curled up on his side, “Yeah, she was being disrespectful, and I told her as much.” “She was really upset; she was crying pretty hard,” I probed. “That’ll do her some good.” His words…
“You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” ―Ansel Adams When I was heavy into photography, what I loved most was the process. Starting with that first moment I looked through the lens, framing the scene around me from my unique perspective. Certain details would interpolate me: a shadow, a reflection, a mood. Certain angles…
One of my favorite metaphors for life is that part during the airline pre-flight safety demonstration when they say, “In case of cabin depressurization, an oxygen mask will drop from above.” No, not that part, the part afterward when they say, “Make sure and secure your own mask before helping anyone else in need.” Make…
When you think of a bubble, what imagery comes to mind ? Something weightless, fragile and transparent ? Or something enclosed, secure and protective? A bubble is often used to describe an area in our lives that can encapsulate us, sequester us, keep us single-mindedly revolving around what’s inside. It commonly refers to communities, but also to…
“It sounds like you don’t know what you want.” He wasn’t wrong, but his words stung and I sat in silence holding back tears until we pulled up in front of the house. I had gone on a day trip to Mazamitla with a new acquaintance, an American from Arizona who sold some kind of…
Zucchini quiche, zucchini bread, zucchini noodles, zucchini fries, zucchini muffins, zucchini frittata, zucchini chips, zucchini sticks, zucchini curry, zucchini au gratin, zucchini in ratatouille, chopped up in a salad or on a pizza, tossed with pasta, layered in a lasagna, used in a chutney, marinated, sautéed, grilled, sliced, diced, fried, steamed, baked, stuffed, as a…
I remember a girl who was fierce and free. A girl with an endless imagination who felt things deeply. She was fearless, despite so many things that she didn’t understand, so many adult things that she found strange and confusing. She thrived in her gymnastics class, hurling herself across the pommel horse with ease and…