What Was Destroyed Did Not Vanish
Born before Poland existed, my father lived to see what survives destruction.…
David Enzel
53 posts
Washington, DC
My Parents Were the Argument
1 min read
In 1896, Theodor Herzl warned that antisemitism would return even after periods of calm. More than a century later, his words still resonate. As the child of Holocaust survivors, I have never viewed the need for a Jewish state as an abstract political question. My parents’ lives were the argument.…
The Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk: Architecture, Memory, and Politics
3 min read
Bold design, curated narrative.…
POLIN Museum: A Monument to Life and Memory
2 min read
A museum recounting 1,000 years of Jewish life in Polish lands.…
The Joy of Photography
1 min read
A thoughtful essay by Ferdy Christant reminded me that photography does not need to justify itself.…
Vintage Images of Washington
1 min read
Vintage photos and ephemera of Washington preserved on Flickr.…
Pan Am Promised Me the Moon
1 min read
Signing up to go to the moon.…
Heaven on the Edge of a Lake
3 min read
Before this trip, I had never heard of Queenstown. What I found was a small town on the edge of Lake Wakatipu that felt immense in presence — a place of glaciers and gondolas, cemeteries and laundromats, where even ordinary moments unfold against something extraordinary.…
The Resonance of Laura Pausini
1 min read
I don't speak Italian, and I understand only a small fraction of Laura Pausini's lyrics. Yet her voice has captivated me for years. Some music transcends language.…
Lara Fabian
2 min read
In 2018, I saw Lara Fabian perform at the Warner Theatre in Washington, DC. Hearing her sing live from a few rows away gave me a new appreciation for one of the most powerful and expressive voices I have ever heard.…
Remembering Constantine "Costa" Manos (1934-2025)
1 min read
In 2002, I took one of Costa Manos's street photography workshops in Maine. I showed him a slide I'd made at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. He looked at it a long time — something he did not often do — and said, "It's ok." To this day, I still hear his voice when I look at a photograph.…
Edinburgh and the Stories We Choose
4 min read
Edinburgh is a city that understands the power of stories. From Harry Potter pilgrims on Victoria Street to the portraits lining the walls of a Victorian gallery, I found myself wondering how places become meaningful—and how much of that meaning we choose for ourselves.…