Now

Dear friend,

It’s been a full revolution around the sun since I’ve seen you! I sincerely hope you have been well.

I’m writing to you today from Pasadena, California. My son Rami is 15 months old and it’s been an absolute joy to be able to spend the majority of my time with him and my wife, Kathy. We are very grateful to have the flexibility to slow down our careers as our family grows.

Rami is walking as of a couple months ago and saying some words as well. He remains obsessed with animals, especially dogs. Nowadays, Kathy or I take him to storytime at the library & the park multiple times a week. We have met multiple families in the area with babies, and it’s fun to see how different all the kids are & to see Rami interact with them. He’s a wonderful, hilarious, sweet, and jolly kid. We are very lucky.

As for myself, I am continuing to figure life out, something I’m slowly coming to understand I will never succeed at, and indeed may be what it means to live an interesting life.

Since quitting my job in late 2024 I have embraced being a professional dilettante. I pursue whatever interests me. I have noticed that the thread running through all my interests is the question of how a mind develops, which I am thinking about through the lenses of neuroscience, cognitive psychology, education, culture, child development, and philosophy. I hope to make headway on this question over the long-term, especially as I plan to start a microschool for my + my friends’ kids down the road.

Lately I have been reading, writing, tweeting, healing my knee so I can play tennis, playing Rocket League with my brother, doing nothing, asking myself what the Dao wants me to do, and mentoring a few local kids.

Not having a defined career and taking care of an ever-evolving little human keeps me on my toes, but it also means I’m always dancing.

Please reply to this letter if you’d like, I’d love to hear from you. A year is much too long.

Yours,
Vansh