It was the one fixed point on a vacillating compass of relative morality until, one day, a tiny bird, the merest wisp of red plumage, tore away my comforting absolute and aligned me squarely with the NRA supporters, Second Amendment defenders and pro-gun crusaders I had reviled.

NEWSWEEK: Culture

Javier was an ultra-conservative, pro-Franco follower of the Opus Dei, and he never ceased to scandalize me with his political opinions, which I strained to understand in my developing Spanish.

WSJ: Escabeche: A Seafood Dish for the Fish-Phobe