I came to Great Barrington because I wanted my two children “to be from somewhere.” There are many times I have told myself what a mistake that was, that I chose the wrong place, that I should have stayed in London, or moved on when I realized how alien I felt here, knowing that that was bound to affect them. But maybe it’s worked out, in spite of me. Here’s something I wrote for the book, and below it is what happened yesterday:

Unlike my family in the Silicon Valley when I was a kid, I know my neighbors. Alex has lived next door since the summer we moved here, 15 years ago, and our kids used to run back and forth through the gap in the fence. Liz and I both love to garden. Diane and I met at yoga class. When I