Graduated Myself to Scrambled Eggs (and Even Grilled Sausage). I've Moved Beyond Soup, Pudding, and Yogurt! An Achievement!

I also reread Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohammed's When Stars are Scattered, which we're focusing on this week, and my heart is heavy for the global reality of refugee camps, deplorable living conditions, and the randomness of being born in the ways some children are. It's a tremendous, heavy reality to think about and I can't help but to think of the boys I was fortunate to meet that changed my life forever. The probability of being selected is less than 1%, and the struggle upon arrival is not easy, either. Still, perseverance remains a virtue, as does hope, and that is what I'm carrying with me into another hectic work week.

I also packed up the paddle boards and kayak, knowing the chances of getting on the water again are next to null. The flesh-eating bacteria and the invasion of Chinese lantern flies (which are abundant) makes me skittish about the very thing I've loved doing in my life in Stratford. 

Time is spinning forward faster than usual these days, and I answer emails, texts, and even phone calls with trepidation. I suppose I'm looking for answers that, thus far, have been humanly impossible: the inequities, the realities, the drive for success in the United States, and so many needs. It weighs heavier on the mind some days more than others. I awoke this morning more mentally taxed than usual...trying to keep my optimism, faith, and direction in check.

The sun came out. I vacuumed the car, too. Put away laundry. Submitted another piece of writing. And I took my medications like a good boy, trying to stay ahead of it all.

Vitamins are good, Crandall. As well as meditation.