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a featured piece is relaxing with friends over an extended dinner, candlelight flickering, sharing stories with no consideration of the passing time.

anticipation
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anticipation

These days I try to keep one foot in the here, appreciating this experience, but my other one is dancing quickly towards the future.

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take note - this matters
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take note - this matters

To find inspiration we must first believe in it. We must see that even in a world fraught with disease and discourse, there are stories - some every day, and some found on the world stage - that collectively give us hope and personally transform us.

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the goat path
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the goat path

We all need a good pilgrimage. It doesn’t need to be far or exotic, religious or too time consuming, just the chance to feel restored, refreshed.

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the gift of the year
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the gift of the year

Good lighting has a way of capturing the best in landscapes and in portraits. It’s a photographer’s secret weapon, and in some ways that is what this year did – it captured the best in people despite a backdrop that was dark and ominous.

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from scratch
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from scratch

The kitchens of my lifetime, just physical structures, are the backdrop for infinite moments both meaningful and random that I will hold onto and draw upon my entire life.

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the anchor
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the anchor

It’s been a year of high winds and strong currents, but we are reminded by that old relic from bygone days to look to those things in our lives that keep us anchored and grounded until the worst of it passes us by.

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let’s dance
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let’s dance

Although I do not think you will see Rumi’s quote on our card, it has stuck with me. Because it is true and feels so relevant. Now. This year.

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for the win
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for the win

It’s all just gotten to be too much and, personally, what I have noticed is that sometimes I just need a day. I need that day to succumb to feelings of loss, despair, and even hopelessness; a day to really feel them, to climb into bed and pull the covers up, buried, the weight not so much suffocating but cleansing.

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i can still feel
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i can still feel

While the Novocaine set in and my mouth felt strange and saliva dribbled down the side of my face, I thought about all of the ways in which we conduct our lives so that we can block out pain and discomfort.

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confirm humanity
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confirm humanity

I was relieved that I had passed the test that I am not in fact a robot, but confirm humanity? That seemed to indicate so much more.

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i am because we are
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i am because we are

I remember thinking that’s the kind of place where I want to live. A community where we care for and look out for one another, where we feel safe, where we feel connected, “where everybody knows your name” to quote a popular TV jingle.

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love, mom
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love, mom

Brady, this is for you as you head off to boarding school. And you being you, and me being me, you knew this was coming!

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in search of silver linings
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in search of silver linings

Isaias gave me more than just eight hot days; it gave me the chance to purge and replenish. I hope post-COVID, I will take the same care in deciding what I will bring with me and what will be left behind.

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friendship
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friendship

Sometimes I wonder if the risk of infection is worse than the risk of compromised mental health. I was reminded this week to prioritize friendship. I was reminded that even those friends who seem to have it all, may be struggling on the inside. I was reminded to probe, to love, to care, to not hold back, and to trust our friends with our most vulnerable and honest thoughts.

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unmasking
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unmasking

If we are able to withstand the risk of rejection, maybe even more than once, the chances are great that we will find a home, a tribe, the ability to relax in our own skin in the company of others, and a place where we are known and truly seen.

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