Salt, Ink, & Soul
Writing on food, family, and identity
“I write so that our food, our struggles, and our stories are never forgotten, but carried forward as legacy.”
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Salt, Ink & Soul is a reader-supported journal built from memory, flavor, and truth. If these articles move you ,consider helping keep them alive.
Felix the Fox Collection
Gentle adventures from the Whispering Woods — stories of courage, friendship, and resilience for children, and for the adults who read beside them.
Latest Post
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In Defense of the Lawnmower Beer
By Kyle J. Hayes Beer has become complicated. Once, it was simple—just barley, water, hops, and yeast. A drink for the working man, the tired, and the thirsty. But then came the craft beer revolution, and suddenly, it wasn’t enough to drink a cold one after a long day. Now, beer had to be an
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The Wall We Build, The Wall That Breaks Us
By Kyle J. Hayes I first saw The Wall as a teenager. Back then, I didn’t have the ears to truly hear it. I watched it the way you watch something forbidden—half in awe, half in confusion, knowing you were witnessing something profound but not yet possessing the weight of experience to carry its meaning.
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The Quest for the Perfect Cup
By Kyle J. Hayes It started with Café Vienna—that instant, powdered, vaguely European concoction that felt exotic when I knew no better. It was a teaspoon of convenience, a promise of sophistication in a paper packet. It was sweet, creamy, and barely coffee, but it was a start. Then came drip coffee—a necessary evolution. The
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Greatest Albums of All Time
Held by the Sound By Kyle J. Hayes Some albums ask for your attention. Others demand it. Tapestry does something different—it holds you. From the first notes pounded out on the piano, there is no question that Carole King means every word she sings. There is no artifice, no polish designed to smooth over the
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Greatest Albums of All Time
A Song I Somehow Knew By Kyle J. Hayes I have never watched The Sound of Music, not once, not as a child, not as an adult. It wasn’t rebellion. It wasn’t some grand statement. It was instinct. Something in me recoiled at the idea of turning Nazi Germany into a backdrop for a musical,
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When Someone Shows You Who They Are: A Lesson from Maya Angelou
The older I get, the more I say it. “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.” It is not just a quote. It is a warning, a wisdom, a truth that only deepens with time. And the woman who spoke it, Maya Angelou, was more than a poet, more than
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