6:00pm — Phuket, Thailand — A few yards in front of some wild weather is raging. The hills in slight distance appear engulfed in a monsoon that is insisting on preserving my space.

Sensuous . . . were there any one singular word to describe this trip, it would be that. Yet, truly, I am distressed that along with the newness, the drive may also fade. “God, have mercy on us.”