I spent most of last week back home in Virginia, which meant a pleasant mix of family, friends, cookouts, oysters, and most of all, a lot of time on the water.
This photo was taken outside of Merroir, an amazing restaurant right on the Rappahannock River, and along the banks of some of Virginia’s finest and finally sustainable oyster beds.
Merroir is, as it sounds, very similar to terroir. While terroir describes all of the uncontrollable factors that affect each vintage of wine, merroir encompasses how intimately impacted an oyster is by the body of water it comes from. This includes everything from the algae it feeds on, the strength of currents and tides, the mineral content of the seafloor, the year’s rainfall, variances in temperature, and the unpredictable dynamics of each season.
This idea stayed with me as I took an early train back to the city. Inherently, I am so much of where I came from. However, over time, I’ve been formed into who I am now by so many places and people, moments and memories, adventures and adversaries. And armed with this new warm layer of family love and Virginia sunshine, I felt more armed to take on whatever the city would throw at me next.
As we’re all somehow floating on and getting tossed around this wild sea of a city, we find ourselves riding out tumultuous relationships, navigating between financial setbacks and celebration-worthy victories, and finding ways to simply appreciate those days of tranquil seas.
And we are each only able to do this because of the merroir of where we came from, and every intricate layer that has formed us, insulated us, impacted us, and strengthened us along the way.
So keep steady, dear sailor. And know that if you ever feel unable to navigate these uncharted waters, I suppose I’ll be your captain. Of course, if you’ll have me.
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