Margo has a love of family, friends, food and φιλότιμο. Philotimo (also spelled filotimo; Greek: φιλότιμο) is a Greek noun that has the literal translation of "love of honor". Her favorite place is on a Grecian island surrounded by such rich and deep history and family traditions that make Greece such a magical place.

A few years ago, she will never forget learning this word: φιλότιμο (philotimo also spelled filotimo). She came across it on a Greek Instagram account. I read the description of what was clearly a very old picture, maybe early 1950s (when did pictures first start and what did they look like?) She read the description and instantly (no pun intended) connected with it. She felt like it was innately in her; her siblings; her parents; her grandparents; her aunts and uncles; her cousins. She was raised with philotimo in my blood, heart and I breathe it in and out every day.

She was inspired to write a series of short stories about her interactions with complete strangers who have become family in a matter of minutes, when she received the book with the Arianna Huffington quote on the home page about philoxenia. She wishes she could recall all her interactions from all her trips, but her pre COVID 19 memory is not serving her well.

For more information on philotimo please visit Psychology Today.