J.R. Jamison sits down with Samantha Ellis to journey through time, language, and cultural connectivity as the two explore her new memoir, Always Carry Salt. 

The daughter of Iraqi Jewish refugees, Samantha grew up surrounded by the noisy, vivid, hot sounds of Judeo-Iraqi Arabic; a language that’s on the verge of extinction. Now, raising her own family, she questions how to pass on this heritage without passing on the trauma of displacement. Always Carry Salt is a life-affirming tale of resilience and repair, the healing power of our ancestor's music, stories, and recipes, and a moving meditation on the words and traditions that shape us.