Life Update / Rest in Peace Natalie Zemon Davis

Plus, replies to Esther’s guest essay, organic farming in Taiwan and Indonesia, and a new children’s book Hear our Voice

Dear all, 

Albert here. It’s been a tough couple of months. We hit rock bottom in October. Like almost everybody, we’ve been horrified by the war in Gaza, feeling confused about how to speak to this moment. More than ever before, Michelle, who has six students from Israel, has found it difficult to navigate the classroom. On my side, I’ve been overwhelmed by administrative duties and talks that I agreed to a long time ago and that seemingly all came due at once. 

It’s been two years since we left Paris for Taipei. We’re on Year Three! The anniversary sparked an intense bout of soul-searching. Many of the frustrations we felt in Paris have been resurfacing: we’ve found ourselves unable to say no, overworked and overcommitted. (Late at night, when Michelle can’t sleep, she Googles “how do you say no”?¹) Michelle still faces the persistent question of purpose outside the U.S. (“It’s Year Three and I still can’t speak this effing language!”) And, at the heart of it all, we have little time f…