My aunt from South Africa, indeed where all my aunts are from, stopped through Nashville on business a couple days ago and gifted me this shirt. If you’re from the UK, South Africa, Australia, Canada, or the other 50 or so former territories of the British Empire, you appreciate how magnificent this shirt is. If you’re not, please, for my amusement, give a big ol’ spoonful to somebody you don’t like very much and tell them it’s Nutella.

My family’s strewn about all over the world, mostly in places where spiders can kill you, and it amazes me how well we stay in touch. Kudos to my parents and their siblings for making it a priority, and instilling in the next generation a deep sense of grounding and presence in family. I’m grateful the Allen Stone Band’s global reach allows me to see variously accented Larkins, Brophys and Brunés at least once a year.

When things get crazy, wherever I am in the world, chances are there’s family near by, which means a home cooked meal, cozy bed, and unrelenting psychological manipulation. Makes for a competitive game of Scrabble.