I hope to describe a chronology of experiences that will give pause for reflection on what it means to live in and be part of a place, and what it takes to either make that place a community or to damage or destroy it. None of the writers, theorists, planners, architects or critics I have read seem to have ever stood in my particular corner. If any did, their theories, plans and visions refuse to admit it.

I am not writing to tell you how smart I was, how fortunate, observant or damaged I have been. I’m reluctant to presume that I am worth writing about at all. It’s always easier to write or read about someone else. I just don’t know a better way to tell you what I’ve learned.