It’s really good to be back in California, back in the United States. Whenever I see the American flag flying, this is what it sounds like in my mind:

I know it’s a bit corny but that is how it feels to me.

There is a poem below by Yahya Kemal Beyatlı about Istanbul that a friend sent to me. Although I love being home, back in the States, the words below could have been written by me: