This faded red cell phone stand served with a shiny, silver, broken cellphone as the focal point of my connection with community, family, relatives and friends, most especially from the Philippines where I was born, and from all corners of the United States.

No sad moments. Every ring from the telemarketer to the “sorry wrong number” was music to my ears. It helped me set my feet planted steadily on solid Philadelphia ground known all over the world as the “City of Brotherly Love” since I arrived in 2003.