I moved to West Philadelphia in 1985 after finishing college nearby. It was a much humbler place back then. Without much money, I made do with what I had, which let the last thirty-one years form a journey in which I have kept becoming more myself. For example, after raising a family, I returned to an earlier passion of making clay pots with my hands. This little porcelain arrangement of eight tiny hand-made pots and four flowers are from two projects. The pots, part of a collection of 1000, were the moment when I knew I wanted to do more with ceramics. And the flowers are the more: just a few of the many that were in my MFA show this spring. All this – my passion, my production, my practice – have become possible in my city that extends itself to embrace both the long-timer and newcomer, and shapes us into a whole which constitutes the city’s life.