Every one is born a king, and most people die in exile.

The quote above is from one of my favorite authors Oscar Wilde. As much as this weekend has been spent partying, resting, loving, and being productive it's also been a reading weekend. Sounds wonderful, right?

Yesterday, I finished Sister Teresa by Barbara Mujica an epic historical novel about the the woman who became Saint Teresa. Today I started reading The Mapmaker's Wife by Robert Whitaker, a delightful account of a women's journey through the Amazon. The journey itself probably won't be summed up as delightful, but I haven't gotten that far in the novel yet. Currently, we're reviewing the fascinating advances in map making that started in the 1400s.

One of the figures Whitaker mentions is Voltaire. I began thinking about the notable men and women that were exiled and continued to dedicate their lives to their passions. Here's a short list of several that I'm proud to mention.

Voltaire exiled from France
Pablo Neruda exiled from Chile
Juan Perón exiled from Argentina
Benazir Bhutto exiled from Pakistan
Rigoberta Menchú exiled from Guatemala
Celia Cruz exiled from Cuba
Frédéric Chopin exiled from Poland
Lotte Lehmann exiled from Germany