the doctor was in

Got up from my fetal position long enough to go outside, drive through the snarled traffic and sit with a good friend for several hours, over jasmine tea and drunken noodles, then coffee and carrot cake and then finally herbal tea. I was able to breath in and breath out … come up to the subject every half hour, examine whether I was able to talk about it or not… back off, breath… look into another set of eyes that understood the wreckage… breath some more until I was able to gain composure. This was my first time meeting him face to face although we have been friends for about a year now.

The first thing he said when I came into the restaurant was that “The doctor is in” and for the next 6 hours, the doctor was in. We shared stories of life history. I told the stories that I was able to tell. The ones that wouldn’t make me fly apart. He told some of loss that made me have to catch my breath. 6 hours later, I was able to return to my place and sleep. Sleep hard and long through the rest of the night.

Three things that he pointed out to me... I’m not wearing a bathrobe with 3-day-old wine stains running down the front, I am brushing my teeth, I am making my bed. Additionally, and to my credit, the coffee stain on the kitchen floor is really bugging me.

The Journey. Through the middle of it, I ride.