11 Comments

Write the essay from the perspective of an insect that relied on the eastern redwood for its life.

Write the essay from the perspective of another tree that was in competition with eastern redwoods and wanted to see them go extinct.

Love this exercise.

Expand full comment

I agree with the thoughtful compliments from your readers.

You are a gifted writer with a unique and unexpected perspective.

Expand full comment

Looking forward to seeing more of Sami!

Expand full comment

People often ask me: “Do you ever get tired of traveling?” I can’t help but feel like it’s not the right question. It’s like asking: “Do you ever get tired of writing?” Or “Do you ever get tired of brushing your teeth?”

For me, I really enjoy it when I feel “things are moving”. Otherwise I feel “suffocated”.

Expand full comment

Avril 14 is one of my favorite songs too! I also love Flim.

Interesting to learn about the Lars von Trier challenge. I saw one of films for the first time in college and it blew my mind.

Expand full comment

Awesome piece and thought-provoking reflections, Charlie, as always. And thanks for highlighting my comment to your prior piece. :)

Expand full comment

"you need to be in touch with yourself to really get to know a place."

Yes! You articulated this so clearly. Being a good traveler (whether you're far away from home or bringing the spirit of travel to your hometown) takes real self-awareness. Thanks for the shoutout and for engaging with my essay so thoughtfully, Charlie.

And I really love this "twelve favorite problems" idea...

Expand full comment

How do I bring the spirit of travel ... part of my book-writing exercise at present.

Another great read.

I love the "write the essay" prompts and exercise.

Expand full comment

You should check our Alastair humphries idea of a micro adventure.

Expand full comment

Love seeing your first two questions here, and looking forward to reading the rest of your problems!

I vote for “Write the essay from the perspective of an Eastern Redwood tree, detailing its life, experiences, and eventual demise” - or, maybe take it a step further and write it as the tree’s obituary 🧐

Expand full comment

Having recently spent two and a half months in South Africa, it was abundantly clear that any attempt to "live like a local" would be wildly misguided. Samantha captures the reasons why perfectly – thanks for bringing her article to my attention.

Expand full comment