I have an infatuation with New York City that has not abated after over 7 years of living here. I love it in a way I never loved my hometown in Japan, where for 18 years, all I wanted to do was escape.

The ending of Lolita moves me to tears, not only because I mourn Lolita's childhood that never existed, but because I feel the pain of Humbert Humbert for having defiled what he loved, and having to live with that knowledge for the rest of his life. I hope to carry this feeling with me in my career as a lawyer and throughout my life.