This piece was originally written as part of a larger poetry and prose project that explored the author’s relationship with his family’s farm in Tennessee. Over a month-long span, he reflected daily on the lessons that the place and its people have taught him. The piece has been adapted for publication here. Two Decembers ago, we cut up a few […]
Fracking | Accident The driver of the frackwater truck swerved because there was a little girl walking along the highway. She was walking eastward early that morning, not precisely on the shoulder, swerving in and out of the edge line the way she does with thick, dulled crayons. She might have been chasing a ball or a cat. From my desk now […]
Every day, roughly 8,000 tonnes of rubbish are collected from the capital city of Jakarta before ending up at Bantar Gebang, the largest landfill in Southeast Asia. Just two decades ago, the area was covered with paddy fields before it was bought by the state and later converted into a landfill. Being in Bantar Gebang for the first time, I wasn’t struck by the monumental size of the landfill as much as the sight of dozens of people working tirelessly from the base to the very top […]
The first thing I did during my tryout for the sailing team was crash straight into the seawall. Everyone at the Naval Academy is required to be part of a sports team. I did track in high school, but there was no way I was making the team at the Academy, and I was forced to shop around for alternatives. My dad owned […]
In the Shade of the Cottonwood Tree I was born and raised in the desert. Like most desert plants and animals, I love rain. I live for rain. I live because of rain. Rain heals me, as it heals and seals the cracked surfaces of sunbaked arroyos and limestone canyon walls. It peels back the membranes of seedpods, freeing them […]