My Resistance to Change
It all started when I got an iPhone. Buying yourself a new toy is not usually a moment for self-reflection, but in this case, it got me thinking. I couldn’t stop thinking about my...
Category: Life
The Picture Frame: Story of a Fiasco
Sometimes a simple project can turn into a complete fiasco. The project? To frame a flag. My dad had acquired a yellow “Don’t Tread on Me” flag, which he wanted to put in the...
Blind Spot
I have a blind spot in the center of my vision. So do you, though you’ve probably never noticed. Our brain fills in the information, like the Clone Stamp tool in Adobe Photoshop. This...
Samoa Stories: Palagi Beach
The sun was beating down on me as I rode in the bed of a pickup truck. The air was as hot and muggy as usual. I was wishing I had brought a lava-lava...
The War Protest
In January 2003, the United States and its allies were on the verge of invading Iraq. I thought that starting a second war was a bad idea, so when a friend invited me to...
Samoa Stories: The Centipede
It was Saturday night in Lion’s Park. There was a party going on, and all of the palagis were in attendance. There weren’t that many mainlanders on-island, so we all tended to stick together....
Sagrada Familia: A Work in Progress
Have you ever visited the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona? The Sagrada Familia is my favorite building in the world. As the masterpiece of the eccentric architect Antoni Gaudí, this church has a look unlike...
The One Year Rule
Anything worthwhile takes a year. Last month, I finished my novel. It took me a year and a half. That’s pretty quick for a novel, but it still felt like a long time. It...
