A Beautiful Easter Day

The old man sitting next to the bubbling drinking fountain in a dusty blue ball cap took a long drag of his cigarette and looked up at me with his puffy grey face, deep crescents of crimson underlining each sagging eyelid. “Sit down.” I turned to him. “I said ‘Sit down.’” he ordered me in […]

Behind-the-Scenes and the Stories I Don’t Tell

Sometimes I need a trip. I just need to get away And when life gets busier I need it to be alone, so I can sit with my thoughts, turn them over, examine them, and find the answers I need. A good trip facilitates that through distraction – I can focus my conscious brain elsewhere […]

A Tale of Two Cheeses

As a child, the first cheese I remember discovering and liking was Muenster. Sure, there were other cheeses in our home such as bland, somewhat weird tasting American slices that made a great grilled cheese, and briny, pungent parmesan, which we sprinkled liberally on Mom’s spaghetti. But these were such normal things that I didn’t […]

The Texas of France

Nestled on the fluid border that divides France and Germany, in the picturesque land between the Vosges mountains and the Black Forest, Alsace boasts a rich, complicated history. A frequent spoil of war, the region has changed hands five times since 1681. When a people experience such swings of authority and allegiance, they develop a […]

In The Museum of Joy

I most often travel solo, but I never really travel alone. Dad was with me today for this one, at least for a little while. He’s been gone almost 14 years, and never visited France, so I didn’t expect to find him here. And yet there he was. Still feeling a bit off kilter in […]

In Which I Stop

I hoisted my bulky suitcase, now a backpack, onto my shoulders and crossed the threshold into Strasbourg’s morning, subdued by fog. Around me, the sidewalks were empty, the only noise coming from my footsteps and the occasional creaks of the buckles and straps as the weight shifted with my stride. Quietly I padded through the […]