Tears came with a knowing nudge,

“you”

and the kitten climbed the skinny crepe myrtle higher,

leaves fell like feathers and I underlined, then reread.

“Doing those deeply unfashionable things…slowing down, letting your spare time expand, getting enough sleep, resting…is a radical act now, but it is essential. This is a crossroads we all know, a moment when you need to shed a skin.

If you do, you’ll expose all these painful nerve endings and feel so raw that you’ll need to take care of yourself for a while.

If you don’t, then that skin will harden around you. It’s one of the most important choices you’ll ever make.”

“Wintering, The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times” by Katherine May