A little goes a long way in Somalia: $5 will feed a person there for about two weeks.

Friendships that don't fit my life anymore have faded away, and new ones have come in.

I swung from one place to the next, sometimes backward, sometimes forward, capitalizing on my own momentum, knowing that at some point my arms—or, more accurately, my quivering bank balance, accessed through foreign ATMs—would give out, and I’d fall to the ground.

I am so proud to be a Canadian.

Contemplating Christmas when you are isolated and far from home brings its own unique pain.

Maintaining my dignity is so important for me.

I don't think I'm unusual in that, in my 20s, like many people, I felt invincible.