One of my sweet friends recently went to Sri Lanka and came back with all kinds of stories about her homeland. I had to live vicariously through her, listening to her exotic tales and seeing her country’s beauty through her eyes, because it’s pretty unlikely that I’ll get the chance to visit.

She also came back with a ton of fruit for me – huge, fragrant pineapples, mangos, and wood apples – and if you know me, you can probably guess that I was just about shrieking with delight.…