There was a time when cousins were people you grew up with. They lived in the same house, the same street, the same city, or at least close enough that every summer, wedding, birthday, festival, and family emergency brought everyone into the same room. You fought over the TV remote. You slept on mattresses spread across the floor. You were forced to share food, toys, secrets, clothes, and sometimes even punishments. Your

Most holidays commemorate a moment. A declaration is signed, a battle is won, a nation is founded, and a date is marked on the calendar so future generations can remember what happened. Juneteenth is different. While it is certainly tied to a specific day—June 19, 1865—it asks us to think about something larger than a single moment in history. It asks us to think about how change actually reaches people, how freedom is experienced, and how communities rebuild after generations of injustice.

If you ask my four-year-old brother, Arjun what makes September special, he’ll shout “Grandparents!” with the confidence of a cricket commentator announcing a six. Every year, like clockwork, our Dada (Thatha) and Dadi (Amma) appear at LAX, arms full of pickles, ladoos, and stories from Hyderabad. For us, their arrival is not just a visit; it’s a

Most people know Compton for a very narrow set of reasons. Music. Kendrick Lamar. N.W.A. Gang violence. Police history. A place that shows up in pop culture more than it shows up in real conversations. Very few people know that Compton also has a cricket team.