childhood

True activism is believing in something so strongly that you’re willing to give your life for it — my grandparents taught me that.

I come from a family of die-hard Los Angeles sports fans. Naturally, October, your time of year is like Dr. Frankenstein bringing us back to life.

Have you ever heard about your dad’s commute to school? I’m sure it was uphill, both ways. Probably on Mount Everest.

A piece of wisdom that I’ve heard is that camp can be a redefining moment for kids’ lives. And I’ve learned many ways that this statement rings true.

To my friends, you are the most important and special thing I have in this life.

But as this column has demonstrated, picture books are not the only thing from our childhoods that stick with us; there are so many little things that do as well.

To me, love means remembering the details about a person, because those details hold so many personalities, secrets and values

Shame exposes us, and it puts us in very vulnerable positions. Oftentimes, it can feel as if one is being thrown into oceans to drown and into fires to burn. However, in the same way, I believe that shame is the liferaft or fire extinguisher that prevents us from suffering from our mistakes; it cannot be denied that as much as it feels like it’s causing harm, there are moments when it’s saving us as well.

Love can feel like it is not being given to you, even if it is, which is why it is so crucial that we take a step back and spot it in the many forms it comes in.

I went back to visit you. I only observed you from the outside, but you seemed different. The years must have separated us from each other. Even though you were no longer ours, there were still some of our emblems marked on you, some indications that you had been ours at some point in your existence.