I. When I was in elementary school, I sometimes wore my hair in two braids Parted down the middle, behind my bangs Fastened at the bottom by those old school hair bands with the plastic colored balls. Do you remember those? My maternal grandmother, whom we called Nanay, lived with us. She brushed and braided... Continue Reading →

(Photo source: my late mother, who liked to send me random photos of Filipino-ness) This is my response to the counternarrative of Asian adults embracing their food and complicated food memories. Which has rather become the centered narrative of love, family, resistance, acceptance, pride.   For me, it is also the bitter taste of assimilation... Continue Reading →

(Photo of toddler Gabi, yelling her head off on a carousel, ready to take on the world.)When I was pregnant, my partner Eric and I crafted a music mix of diverse tunes and created CDs to give to our friends who came to our baby shower.  We get a baby bathtub, you get a CD... Continue Reading →

I feel stuck writing this piece.  A lot of starts and stops. So many tangents, and yet I don’t want to say “tangents” because everything is connected.  I am also scared of getting too emotional. I’ve always been scared of getting too emotional. I want to write something funny.  Funny and powerful. I feel like... Continue Reading →