I like old things. Sometimes I like to think maybe it’s because I inherited all my grandfather’s old war stuff, but the truth is, I’ve always loved what’s old: an antique store with everything under the sun in it or the smell of old paper bound to a book of poetry or walking around in […]
Category: Memoir
Moments in time from early childhood to adulthood that deeply impacted my life, one way or another, and made me, me.
The Original Belle & Sebastian – the Moroccan and his dog: a Guest Blog by Driss Laayadi
One of the goals of this blog is to capture moments and memories. The older I get, the more I find myself easily lost in a kind of momentary daze – especially if I’m visiting a place like camp or my grandfather’s farm that was a big part of my early childhood or late teens. Sometimes, even out […]
Reflections of a Lifelong Education
It was the spring of 2002, my senior year of high school, and I’d been invited to Wabash College for the Lilly Honor Scholarship weekend, along with thirty other guys, many of whom were a lot more accomplished than I. Imagine a room full of thirty Max Fischers fighting at a chance to go to […]
Poindexter, Dave Matthews, and following your heart
When I started Wabash, I remember the day my parents moved me into the Kappa Sigma house was a really hot August morning, and when we walked into the fraternity house, I remember being greeted by “Bill” who was like the Hulk and shirtless and immediately intimidated the hell out of me. I was a […]
What’s in a Name?
Abner Doubleday, my six year-old puggle, is a pup of many names. Around the time I got him, in 2007, I named him “Abner” because I was on a big baseball kick. I’d recently watched Ken Burns‘ baseball documentary, and I was fascinated by the story of General Doubleday who, as legend has it, founded […]
Hamza.
I remember the day Avery and I were walking through the orchard, before I’d moved there, and when we climbed up on the cliff overhanging the river, there you were just sitting there in your yellow and blue jacket. All by yourself. It was one of those beautiful spring days, a little breeze just barely […]
Paul and the Magic Rock
I don’t consider myself a mystical sort of person. I don’t think I believe in ghosts, and while I definitely believe that there’s something greater than me out there, a kind of spiritual realm akin my own mundane one, I don’t think – in my life – I’ve gotten many glimpses of something I could […]
Troy and the Woodpecker
One of the things I really wish I could understand is why some memories stick with us while others just wash away. It’s almost like some moments in our lives become stories we tell ourselves (and others) over and over, and those stories go beyond just being part of our story-telling cache; they become a […]
Ms. Hardin’s Senior Lit. Class, c.2001-2002, or the Depths of Free-writing
Ever have one of those college or high school classes that was just the right mixture of people? It didn’t necessarily have to be the people you liked; you might have even despised a few of them. But something about the group dynamic made the class a cut above the rest. You were actually excited […]
Saying Goodbye to Aaron
I didn’t have many friends growing up. For about nine years or so (from third grade to senior year of high school), I only had one, real friend. I had myself convinced that there are two kinds of people in the world: social people who have lots and lots of acquaintances but few meaningful friendships […]
