Summary

In “The Suitcase,” a 20-year-old American woman of Ethiopian descent named Saba visited Ethiopia for the first time, staying with family in Addis Ababa. On her last day in the country, she ventured out by herself and came to an intersection with traffic driving fast in all directions. It was the site of the city's only traffic light. She could not figure out how to cross the street, and a man approached and told her he knew of someone who gave up halfway through crossing and now lived in the intersection. Saba was frustrated that she had a hard time assimilating in Addis Ababa. She ultimately took a taxi from one side of the intersection to the other.

Back at her uncle's house, Saba had one suitcase packed full of her belongings, and the other was packed with items her...