Ethan Sandweiss’ French host family: (l-r) Chloe, 5; Jean Paul; Françoise; Leo, 3; and Ethan with the hood. Photo by Ethan Sandweiss
DIARY, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND ART BY ETHAN SANDWEISS
‘They say that when good Americans die, they go to Paris.’
So wrote Oscar Wilde in The Picture of Dorian Gray, one of the unread books lying in my bedroom in Lyon, France. So, if all good, dead Americans are in Paris, how did I end up here?
In the beginning — May 31, 2014
My twin brother, Noah, and I stand on the stage at Indiana University’s Assembly Hall, delivering a joint class speech to our Bloomington High School South graduating classmates and thousands of their closest friends and family. According to the commencement pamphlet on which I am sitting, I will be attending The University of British Columbia (UBC) in the fall. On this point, however, the pamphlet and I disagree. Yes, I have accepted UBC’s offer of admission, but deep inside, I feel like college is not the right step for me at this time. So with much determination but not much direction, I have decided to defer my offer of admission…
