So I left him there alone to watch history repeat the same events retold again and again on his own.

Friends are honest with each other. Even if the truth hurts. -Maggie

Its 75 Degrees! In December!

Whenever something great happens, you’re always kind of poised for the universe to correct itself.

There was nothing, nothing to depend on. And why was I surprised?

As I stepped out to face myself in the mirror, reaching a hand to smooth away the steam, I saw myself differently. It was as if I had grown again as I slept, but this time just to fit my own size. As if my soul had expanded, filling out the gaps of the height that had burdened me all these months. Like a balloon filling slowly with air, becoming all smooth and buoyant, I felt like I finally fit within myself, edge to edge, every crevice filled.

Times like this it did seem real I was leaving, and even more that my family, and this life, would go on without me. And again I felt that emptiness rise up, but pushed it away. Still, I lingered there, in the doorway, memorizing the noise. The moment. Tucking it away out of sight, to be remembered when I needed it most.