Memory is one of those human traits that both connects us to and alienates us from the past. In memory, we are most aware of how much the past remains just that -- in the past. In comparison to the here and now, we are also most aware of how much has been lost to the past when we recall the things we had and the things that are no longer there. Those really early memories about London, my home, come back to me in almost every detail, even while I tend to have trouble remembering what I did and where I went yesterday or the day before. These memories, or maybe a kind of urban nostalgia, bring to my mind many traditional places in the city that are close and dear to my heart. Indeed, I feel privileged to have known these places and lived through the time of...
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