Most of the selections included in this collection were tinkered with for unity, to dodge repetition when possible, or just because my standards have gotten higher with time. Some existed formerly only in spoken form until I figured out how to transcribe them. Often I had to tell the story over and over till it felt complete. When this happened, it’s likely I couldn’t remember the “true” event anymore, but I could understand myself better. I think it’s like this for most people. We tell a story to survive a memory in much the same way the oyster survives an invading grain of sand. The pearl is the story of our lives, even if most wouldn’t admit it.