thank goodness, and although it makes it harder to stay within my comfort zone, or perhaps because of this, the sound of it is necessary and healthy, strange music to my ears.

I know I’ve posted the following poem before, but it continues to talk me through this time in my growth and development as a writer and a person. Some may read the following as selfish or self-serving, but knowing where I have come from and where I may be going, the wisdom of these words rings loudly. Perhaps it will for you, too, Rosy, as reminder at least.

The Journey
—Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice—
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do—
determined to save
the only life you could save.

we ignore our own voices, our intuition, or just stop listening. Everything we are taught leads us not to trust our gut feelings. But you’re right, our voices can hold infinite wisdom … for us.

For example, I was taught that mermaids are mythical beings, creatures that don’t really exist. But here YOU are, alive and (getting) well. Then again, I’ve always believed in mermaids. :)

Glad you’re here. Feel better.