I earned everything on my resume fair and square.  Degrees, awards, jobs, accomplishments, etc.  

Even if I Hufflepuffed much of my way through a lot of it.

Nothing was given.

But damn it was hard.

As an Asian in this society and especially my fields, absolutely so.  

God usually had to get me in the way Ulysses did – with some sort of unconventional disguised method.  The wooden horse that broke Troy, Athena masking him as an old man to reclaim his kingdom.

When I look back, I had an amazing run.

I kept souvenirs.

My two proudest are my DA shield – gold and dark blue.

My NYPD cap with command pins and merit citation.  These will mean little to nothing to most but they captured who I was.  Shield to the daughter, cap to the boy.

And all the letters and notes my students wrote me.

These were my treasures.

And if you’re wondering about my basketball, guitar, and Bible. The ones I took everywhere.

The basketball is sitting in a boiler room, the guitar in a toy closet.

And I burned my Bible in Boston years ago.

It might be time to get new ones.

You never forget how they feel in your hands. 

All the instincts they return – the leather, fretboard, imprinted words.

Just remember till you’re home again – you belong to me.