We live in a society where art is usually assembled under conditions of hardship, and to be in a place where quiet elegance and elegant luxury were given to artists for the completion of their work was not only a great convenience, but also a means of honoring the creative process itself. I think each of us felt honored by the implicit tribute to what we were doing; it felt as though our ambitions were important, as though the act of creating visual art or literature or music was important to the world. The gentle kindness of the staff strengthened this feeling, as did the beautifully kept gardens, the delicious food, and of course the magnificent castle itself. We had a really good time there with one another; I have never been on any other fellowship (and I have been on many fellowships) where I liked every single person and where everyone’s work continued to interest me. It was an experience outside time, outside the mundane of life, a kind of heavenly lift into a higher realm where all that mattered was the work we were producing and the affection we came to feel for one another and for Diego and the staff. So many little touches–I think, particularly, of the homemade liqueurs–made the residency feel not only like a retreat, but also like a celebration. It’s hard to express the joyfulness of the experience–and I note that as someone who was writing a book on youth suicide that has been so painful to research that I have often been stalled in the process. Civitella is a kind place, a generous place, a forgiving place, a wide-open place. The diversity of the group was fantastic, and what I admired most, perhaps, was that none of what was lovely about the place was overbearing or intimidating; people from every part of the world and every kind of life experience felt almost instantly at home there. If one had the means available, one could go stay in a luxury hotel, but that would not be at all the same: it is the integrity of the experience that so inspires. The cares that fell away were truly forgotten there, and I will always be grateful for the experience I had. My humble thanks to all.