Three blank pages left on my passport

Leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be...wait, no. July 15th, that's when.

I'll be in Shanghai, China for three weeks. I'll be taking lots and lots of pictures. Especially of this.

By senior year of college, I had already been accepted to my first teaching stint in Japan. Before I moved away, I visited my old high school to see my teachers, among them my orchestra teacher. Simone, the young family member of this orchestra teacher, always came to the high school after her school was finished to wait for her to finish work. Everyone who did fine arts knew Simone, and you'd be pretty stupid not to play hula hoops or wall ball with her in between the end of school and rehearsals.

So she recognized me after four years out of high school, and for no reason, gave me this heart. I think you iron it on to a doll's clothing or something, otherwise it has no use.

Except for me to take pictures of it with my camera, wherever I go.

This is a photo of it on my wallet while I held Japanese class in Chicago. I have pictures of it in New York, Tokyo, and Frankfurt, among other places.

And for three weeks it will be all over Shanghai. I'll let you know how it goes.