Winter started off with an ice storm that kept everyone home for a few days. It was fun to go slip sliding around the campus and then come home to a warm fire in the wood stove. Josef and I started learning Japanese on Duolingo and made quite a bit of progress since we were stuck at home.
I started attending an 8 week grief support class through hospice and found it to be really helpful. Painful to be sure, but so valuable to have that dedicated time and space to give to all the unresolved thoughts and feelings. While one year passed is really not that long in the scheme of things, I was able to reflect back on how I was feeling in January of 2023 and boy what a difference! It really gave me some hope seeing how much could change, even if slowly. Those first few months felt like such a black hole from which I would never emerge, so it was encouraging to see that progress!
With respect to work, I decided to learn from the prior year and continue to put my well being above productivity concerns. I set up a little home office in the basement, allowing me to be home with Josef every night and still get work done. I also found morning helpers to drive Josef to school so that I could leave the home early and go swimming or rock climbing or do yoga. Josef got up on his own, make breakfast, pack his lunch, and be ready to depart. It was such a relief for me to have a maturing and capable boy handling his own needs. At night he would often read or listen to music in his room and then just put himself to bed as worked in the basement. Such a change from past years!
I also joined a choir and started doing Argentine Tango again, so I took pretty good care of myself this winter. It was the easiest tax season yet! I think I’m getting the hang of how to pull it off without causing too much damage to my psyche.
