The Unofficial Guide to Life
In these posts, we explore what it means to be human. We navigate the grief of loneliness, of conflict, of heartache. We celebrate the joys of love, of togetherness, of understanding. To the people who influence us – the ones who teach us about others just as much as they do about ourselves – we raise a glass to you. Let’s talk family dynamics, significant others, friendships, and self-examination as we strive to find our place in relation to others and make sense of the complexities of the human heart.
The absolute two worst things in life are hurting other people and being hurt by other people. Both change you in their own way, shattering some innate innocence that lives inside you. When you hurt other people, you think badly of yourself. And when other people hurt you, you may also think badly of yourself but you may also think badly about humanity.
Continue reading “The People who Hurt You”
A bee’s wing is delicate. It’s fragile like glass figurines in a china cabinet, the kind you see in stores accompanied by signs that say ‘you break it, you pay for it.’ A heart is fragile too. It can be carelessly handled and then shattered, lying in shards on a cold floor. But a heart doesn’t come with a ‘you break it, you pay for it’ sign so it seems easier to get away with breaking a heart than it does with breaking a glass figurine. Maybe because a glass figurine has a price tag attached to it and a heart is just a heart.
Continue reading “‘As Fine as a Bee’s Wing’”
Journal Entry Written June 6, 2014
Yesterday I had a grandpa and today I do not. Opi died last night, on his birthday, which I didn’t even remember. I spent the day as normally as any other day. I wrote in my journal while eating breakfast, went to work, came home, taught piano, and then sat down to watch Elysium. Then, right in the middle of my ordinary, everyday life, the phone rings. I think nothing of it. Mommy comes down the stairs.
Continue reading “How It Felt When Opi Died”
Journal Entry Written September 15, 2012
Karina has gone to England and is most likely not coming back until December 18th. I remember thinking, on the night before she left, that this was my last night with the Karina I grew up with. She’s not going to come back the same girl. She’ll have a taste for freedom and maybe never even want to come back and I’ll probably break my heart. She’ll do things I can’t even imagine doing and meet people I’ll never meet. She’ll move forward and when she comes back, I’ll probably still be in the same place.
Continue reading “When You’re the One Left Behind”
December 15, 2015
The other night one of my friends in Madrid went on a date. The rest of us went to a nearby restaurant just in case the date wasn’t going well and she needed an intervention. At first, we wanted to go the same restaurant they were going to but then decided it was safer to go to a different one because I would be the person unable to control my laughter as soon as we walked in and saw them sitting there, causing unnecessary embarrassment to all. Continue reading “My View on Love at 23”
We dropped my older sister off at her new apartment after dinner. I tried to imagine what she felt like but I couldn’t. She must feel so free and happy…but maybe a little sad as well. I tried to imagine buying furniture and being dropped off and closing the door as my parents walked away. Continue reading “When Your Older Sister Moves Out”
Things I Learned Growing Up 