As I get ready for bed tonight, I feel a sense of joy and satisfaction which I didn’t feel when I left work at 5 p.m.
The last six weeks or so have been very stressful. My father’s death has intensified a lot of old hurts that haven’t gone away. It’s been difficult to deal with the flood of emotions since I’m alone and haven’t had someone to help me work things through. And I’ve been preoccupied with other issues that make it difficult to get through my work day.
But when I came home, I was greeted by some cats. Some grumpy. Some happy. All hungry.
Then I took Lucy out for some exploring in the neighborhood. Before I knew it, the painful old emotions were set aside. The stress of the day was forgotten. I just got to enjoy time alone with a beautiful creature who loves and adores me.
There are so many things in my life — and in this world — which pull me toward feeling miserable, but Lucy and the cats and the children I encounter all make me feel joy. They make me feel happy to be alive.
We’re neither friends nor enemies, just strangers who share the past
When love finally dies, it’s like a fever breaks and the pain is gone
Society needs storytellers to help make sense of a changing world
‘This path leads to somewhere I think I can finally say, I’m home’