Danielle Ceribo

I don’t remember the first time I had dried plum. Maybe it was on a playground at my elementary school in Guam. Whenever it was, what I’ll never forget is how my fingers would be stained red after eating one, and how I could still taste traces of saltiness hours after nothing was left but the marble-sized pit. In Guam, these Chinese pickled and dried, sweetened plums are called “sweet and sours” because they are just that — sweet, sour, and a bit salty, too.

Dear SPAM, Those who don’t know you pass you by. Some even look at you with disgust or derision. They look at those of us who love you the same way, even with pity, and not a little bit of confusion. To them I say: You just don’t understand. They don’t understand that appearances aren’t everything. You may be pink, squishy, and a bit gelatinous — and sure, you’re not made with the best parts — but we are greater than the sum of our parts.