02.26.1999
It's a World Cup summer. I caught the game—Korea vs. Czechia—alone in my room, having missed a chunk of the first half already. I watched with bated breath. When Korea scored the equalizer, I was happy, but I didn't jump out of my seat in pure elation, and I didn't scream with joy. When the… Continue reading to you, 20 years from now
My brittle steps carried me along until, at long last, I took my final breath. I had come in sight of the sea, with its sparkling ripples, so brilliant all those summers ago, now gauzy and subdued, as if veiled in tulle. And when the seagulls cut through the clear blue sky, their cries speaking… Continue reading apricity
2 minutes away from the concert venue, streets saturated with parked cars, it dawned upon me that I had not considered the parking situation. A responsible man always considers the parking situation. Despondent but desperate, I cut my death spiral of negative thoughts short and stopped the car. I opened up a parking app on… Continue reading space orphan
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about caterpillars and butterflies. Specifically the phenomenon of metamorphosis. It kind of struck me just how crazy it is. That a mere caterpillar, without guidance, knows to form a cocoon and transform. Who could have imagined that these small, helpless creatures would one day bear beautiful, ornate wings and… Continue reading on the cost of knowing: butterflies and meaning
In the forest, every least thing’s important. It’s all threaded together, so you can’t tell where one thing ends and another begins if you really look at it. The little insects you can’t even see, they play a role as vital as the river. The dead tree is as important as the living one. There… Continue reading thoughts since watching Train Dreams
There are aspects of my personality that I’m currently wrestling with. A lot. I scare myself often, and lately, I’ve been despising aspects of myself that I used to love. As I grow older, the rosy tint in my glasses is wearing off, and what I once viewed as strengths are starting to look more… Continue reading INFP growing pains: on momentary transports
There is a scene that has stayed with me long since watching it. It’s from a 2000 slice-of-life Taiwanese film called Yi Yi. Although the film runs just shy of 3 hours, I left the theater wishing that it was longer. Many of the scenes from this film have continued to linger in my mind.… Continue reading on the longing we carry
There is a fire burning before me. It is a good flame—sturdy and predictable. It undulates gently, crackling and popping in steady cadence. The crickets are joining in unison now, their song reverberating in the thin November air. As an immature and impulsive child, I would often make fires burn as big and bright as… Continue reading in some ways i have changed
I recently watched Manchester by the Sea. It’s a powerful film about grief and one man's inability to forgive himself for his past actions. I loved every minute of it. It’s viscerally raw and deeply human in a way that resonates with anyone who's struggled with feelings of guilt and loss before. Since watching it,… Continue reading reflections on grief, grace, and repentance
"He ate his breakfast with his back against the tree, reading the magazine while he ate. He had previously read but one story; he began now upon the second one, reading the magazine straight through as though it were a novel. Now and then he would look up from the page, chewing, into the sunshot… Continue reading perfect days
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