Things have been pretty bleak for a while.
Sad farewells to Lou and Beth Goddard, dead by their own hands. It’s a hole in my heart.
And to Karen Troiani, murdered by her husband Jack, who also killed himself. I hope I will always remember her kindness.
To Nancy O’Neil Allison, after a painful battle with cancer. More thanks than I can express, Rick, for being there for her.
And to June MacArtor, of all of these the only one who lived a long and fruitful life, a courageous woman who will be sorely missed.
To Michael Forestieri, whose extreme religiosity led him to acts that were morally outrageous, isolating him from many friends. Not everyone understood, and not all of those who did understand could forgive him, but he was nevertheless was a good man.
I’m going to take a vacation, and when I come back, I’ll post something less painful.
Only in silence the word,
Only in dark the light,
Only in dying life:
Bright the hawk’s flight
On the empty sky.
—From “The Creation of Éa” by Ursula Kroeber LeGuin