To what extent is a nation the sum of its people? It’s a question I ask myself when I look at the America that is just now starting to come to grips with the worst global crisis since World War II. On the one hand, every day there is another example on social...
Life in the time of Corona: Riding out the storm in the French countryside
“It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over such a small thing.” – Boromir The Lord of the Rings When the plague reached Paris in 1348, anyone who could afford to flee the city to the safety of the countryside did so immediately. It was with...
Is coronavirus killing compassion, or just exposing selfishness?
Greetings from Europe – where the viruses come from! I went to sleep at home in France thinking that the coronavirus was a global public health problem we all needed to attack together. I woke up to discover that it was a problem caused by those damn Europeans – people like me –...
This is not a drill: Europe in the time of coronavirus
“Where is your next trip?” By a huge margin, that is the question we are asked most often by our village neighbors and friends. Our reputation precedes us, of course, and it is well-deserved. We are often on the move, eager to see as much of the world as we can afford to...