Mountains

La Noche Cultural | The First Part

June 22, 2018June 22, 2018 First Person ForeignCultural Difference

I got to Paquip at 4:45pm on a Thursday in April. Seño Juana, the school principal, was running past me out of the gym. When I saw her that morning at another school where I[…]

Extravío | 75 Palabras in Guatemala

September 5, 2017September 5, 2017 First Person Foreign75 Words in Guatemala

Shortcut. I’d never heard the word. I think I looked it up one other time, but like imperfecto de subjunctivo, it didn’t stick. And the term I found wasn’t extravío, it was something else. In[…]

Song & Storytelling: The Events Before I Go

September 26, 2016September 26, 2016 First Person ForeignAlaska

Act One: Five days before I flew away, Laura and I performed The Last Five Years. It took five minutes and a handshake to reserve the Arctic Bar patio. Tom Thompson donated the equipment. Brooke[…]

Healing in Alaska: Mourning amidst the Majesty

August 16, 2016August 16, 2016 First Person ForeignAlaska

It is a radiant eruption of sunshine here in Ketchikan. It’s not common that I’ve seen days this bright, this beaming. The sun is undressed and the mountains are pied: green and brown and gray,[…]

Nearing End-of-Season Check-Up: How to Remember Alaska

August 9, 2016August 9, 2016 First Person ForeignAlaska

There’s not much that isn’t temporary. Temporary tattoos are temporary, but so are permanent ones as they will fade over the years. Cheese is temporary, sadly, and so are baby teeth, adult teeth, wisdom teeth,[…]