The Left AirPod Never Fully Recovers
A broken AirPod that never fully repairs becomes the only honest metaphor I have for what's left of a marriage that ended without me noticing when.
Archive
Every Essay, Organized
Explore 164 essays spanning 27 years of writing
Archive Index
2026
27 ESSAYSThe Blueprint You Didn't Write
Some mornings the machine is broken and I find out how much of the walking I was never actually doing.
On the Escalator That Never Gets Fixed
Some mornings the machine is broken and I find out how much of the walking I was never actually doing.
2025
20 ESSAYSEllora - Miracle in Stone
Standing inside caves carved by hand centuries ago, I felt embarrassingly small, and I mean that as a compliment.
I Traded You for a Ghost
I chose being alone over being with you, and I'm still not sure it was the right trade.
The Second Toast
At my son's wedding, one old nickname was enough to unravel decades of my own marriage in my head.
2024
14 ESSAYSThe Cost of Our Failures
I watched him cook dinner with effortless grace and spent the rest of the night quietly measuring myself against it.
Shiny Floors, Same Ghosts
The stains in our old carpet turned out to be the only honest record of our family's history.
Dopamine Effect
I keep chasing that same rush of anticipation, even though I already know how the letdown feels.
2023
8 ESSAYSEmbracing the Present: A Simple Framework for Joyful Living
A bottle shattered on my kitchen floor and, oddly, pulled me straight back into the present moment.
This is Life
I stopped needing applause to believe my life meant something.
Eternal Embrace
I've started to believe love and loss were never really separate from each other.
2022
10 ESSAYSRewind - an unfinished story
The plane shook so violently I genuinely thought that flight might be my last, and I still think about what almost happened.
Mom
I watched the flames take my mother, and somehow, in that moment, I finally felt at peace.
Let it be
Every morning I try, badly and repeatedly, to put yesterday's regrets down before I pick them back up.
2021
9 ESSAYSLove
I keep believing in love stories that, so far, have mostly ended in me being alone.
Appa, The Voice That Echoes Through Time
My son calling out "Appa" stopped me cold and pulled my own father right back into the room.
The Morning
Every day the river renews itself, and I keep wondering if I'm capable of
2020
8 ESSAYSDream Girl
I wasn't looking for anything more than friendship, and then, somehow, I
The Relationship Tango
I married in the '90s and had to learn, fast, what trust actually means.
Corona Virus
My own family reacted so differently to the same lockdown that I started to see each of them clearly for the first time.
2019
7 ESSAYSThose were the days
I keep going back, in my head, to a version of love that was simpler than I knew at the time.
Pillars of My Life
My mother and my aunt taught me what strength actually looks like, and I'm still leaning on what they built in me.
She
There's a presence that shows up in my quietest moments and somehow makes them feel less alone.
2018
2 ESSAYS2017
2 ESSAYS2016
5 ESSAYSI want to sing a song
I just want someone to actually hear me, not just listen.
Strawberry Honey
I lost myself completely in one dance, one moment, with you.
Pause
I keep chasing outside approval when life has been telling me all along to look inward instead.
2015
7 ESSAYSSitting in a Crowded Train
I watched the rain and the strangers around me and lost track of which thoughts
Beautiful Dear
I keep finding new moments in the day to remind you how much you mean to me.
Conversation with Life
I keep trying to understand what "letting go" actually requires of me, moment
2014
3 ESSAYSThose Lazy Days
I miss the version of us that had nowhere better to be than a rooftop.
Threshold
She was standing right at the edge of something new, and yet she was not sure if she was ready.
Breaking Free
Leaving India as a young adult taught me that choosing the unfamiliar path is a habit, not a one-time decision.
2013
5 ESSAYSThe Invite
The diagnosis came, and so did an anger I didn't know I was capable of.
Signature
I keep wondering what mark I'm actually leaving behind, and whether anyone will notice it.
Zombies
I watched an entire train car of people stare at their phones and realized I probably looked exactly the same.
2012
8 ESSAYSThat Little Moment
There's one moment I keep replaying that never quite resolves itself.
Be a Good Little Monkey
My toddler's mischief today reminded me how much joy there is in not taking any of this too seriously.
The Ghost
Watching the sunset, I could have sworn I felt you standing right beside me again.
2011
5 ESSAYSStrangers
We're bound together by circumstance, and somehow that's not the same as being close.
Wrinkles on the face
She looked in the mirror and had to make peace with everything the lines on here face were keeping score of.
Waiting for Her
I woke up to a relationship I almost didn't recognize anymore.
2010
5 ESSAYSThe Shrine of Disney
The anticipation leading up to that trip turned out to be its own kind of magic.
Break up
I watched my parents' marriage end as a kid, and I'm still sorting through what that left behind.
The Drunkard
Everyone else could see it before I let myself admit how far gone I actually was.
2009
2 ESSAYS2008
1 ESSAYSFirst Day at School
I was more nervous than my kid was on their first day of school, and I'm still not over it.
2007
2 ESSAYS2003
1 ESSAYSMemory
I still set two cups of coffee out of habit, long after only needing one.
2002
1 ESSAYSLittle World
At nine months old, apparently, I already had opinions about everything.
2001
2 ESSAYS2000
2 ESSAYS1999
2 ESSAYS1997
3 ESSAYS1996
1 ESSAYSMemories of Another Day
I keep getting pulled back into people and places I thought I'd already left