I am a simple New England girl. I am amused by elevators and escalators, oil tankers and the sea. I try not to follow the news on the war too closely because I don't need the anxiety. I try not to leave the lights on, the water running, or waste things I could use.

I love the warm keys of my laptop after I've used it for a while, the song of my humidifier that puts me to sleep, and the look of a blank page: it is enticing and daring. The caress of the icy river in summer, the breath of wind and bird song on my neck and cool morning sun are my callings. Writing, all the pure words that jumble my mind; my chickens, velvet silken beings that I love, and my drawings in the style of anime keep me going.

My friends keep me keeping on. If I didn't have her smile or his laugh in a day, I'd be afraid. I need them as a vital vent: frustration, anger, excitement, they listen. So does my family. They'll sit for me while I tell them this or that, even if they don't understand. You don't have to hear what I say, you just need to empathize. They do, and if I didn't have that I'd be sad, but I don't have to worry because I do have that.

And that is what I think is fabulous. Waking up in a warm bed. Friendly calls of familiar voices and the knowledge that whatever happens, things could probably be worse, but they aren't. There will be challenges thrown down in the hand of life I've been dealt, but there's always an ace up my sleeve. I don't have it the worst; I can get out of it, and I appreciate that.

Life is colorful. It's a bit of golden clay, preciously pliable. It will be molded but never hardened because there is always room for change and new growth. I don't know what shape I'll be, but I will be happy regardless. I've got the outline of what I want in life and that is good enough for now. Life is still a long time coming, so I'll take it as it comes.

I'm a simple New England girl, fascinated by elevators and escalators. I try not to add things into my life I don't need, but it happens. I try not to waste, but it happens. And whatever comes to me, I've always got an ace up my sleeve.