From December 2019 to February 2020, I was in Brazil. Without full comprehension, I (we) stood on the edge of a pandemic. The global scope of the crisis had yet to be fully felt and realized. Before "normal" ended. Before lockdowns, mask burnings, social isolation, uprising—I was in Brazil, with its complexities, beauties, intensities, realities.

My time there left its mark on me, and is still felt to this day a year plus since—having informed almost every aspect of my life and work. It is certainly not lost on me that I had these experiences on the cusp of this pandemic.