I TEXTED THE FAMILY GROUP CHAT “TRAIN ARRIVES AT 3PM – ANYONE PICKING ME UP” I HAD JUST COME BACK TO HAWAII CARRYING MY BROKEN SUITCASE MY PARENTS REPLIED “WE’RE BUSY – PLAN BETTER NEXT TIME” MY SISTER SNAPPED “YOU SHOULD STOP MAKING US LOOK BAD” I SIMPLY WROTE “NO WORRIES” WHAT THE CHURCH HEARD THE NEXT DAY MADE THEM DROP THEIR HEADS…
The text arrived just before the train slowed into Honolulu, and I remember the exact way the screen lit my hand in that dim afternoon carriage, pale blue against skin gone tired from too many months of carrying too much. I had one broken suitcase jammed between my knees, the wheel already wobbling from the…