Anthropologist

This project, Small, Stupid, and Beautiful Things, came out of a game I started playing when I was nineteen.

I used to walk down Snelling Avenue in the Midway late at night, my maroon hoodie pulled up against the dark, and I pretended to be an anthropologist for God.

When I saw someone do something beautiful, I muttered to myself: "Do you see that? That's human beings being beautiful to one another."

If it was exceptionally beautiful, I would ask God, "Are you taking notes?"

I still play this game more often than I should. I try to keep my voice down if there are other people nearby.