Ten.One Thousand, Two Hundred & Twenty-Five

1. Sigh.

2. I wake up early, but her light is always on before mine.

3. I go ahead and make the coffee.

4. Ripples in the pond. Squawking jays. Thin gray squirrels jumping from branch to branch.

5. The circular conversation.

6. She asks me how I’m feeling. I am feeling all the feelings.

7. Leftover beef stroganoff before scrubbing toilets.

8. We decide that just because I wake up at 4:00 am, it doesn’t mean I should start working at 4:30 am.

9. Their faces and their voices and their stories. Laughing. Finding some joy.

10. Sigh.