Dear Winter:
It seems that you had a rough time of it this year. I mean, you never quite built up your confidence to just be yourself, you know? You were hesitant, a bit wishy-washy, and you brought far more rain than snow our way this year. Poor L.’s snow boots sit in the garage, mostly unused. One or two days of tramping around, attempting to sled in the meager fallen snow, and that was it.
Look, I get it. Sometimes, life is just hard. Sometimes we don’t feel like ourselves. Sometimes we just can’t muster up the gumption to really go at life with everything we’ve got. It’s okay. It happens to all of us.
But listen: spring is here now. So you can go rest a bit. Take care of yourself. And maybe next year, you’ll have a better idea of the kind of Winter you really want to be. I’ll see you in December.
Sincerely,
Someone who is actually glad we didn’t get many feet of snow dumped on us, but who is still oh-so-tired of the rain
***
Dear Charlie:
I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that having the basement bathroom remodeled was going to be quite so traumatic for you. I mean, yes, we had strangers at our house by 7:00 a.m. every morning for a month. And there were a whole lot of strange noises and smells emanating from the basement.
But, I mean, Chester seemed to adjust okay. After a few days spent hiding under a bed, he decided he would not be controlled by this turn of events, and determined to go about his daily life as before.
But you…well, you never quite got that far. Day after day, you ran upstairs at the first unusual sound and we didn’t see you until dinner time. Even now, weeks after the contractor finished up his part of the job, you are jumpy. If anyone — even one of us — comes in the front door, you are immediately on your feet, prepared to retreat to the perceived safety of one of the bedrooms. Loud noises make your eyes widen, and the basement is still a place you are not quite sure you want to go.
Here’s the thing. The glass guys are installing the door today and then we’re done. Finished. No more remodeling. Well, not for quite a while anyway. Because even though I acted tough, I might have also wanted to hide from the strange people and noises. (But that can be our little secret, okay?)
Hang in there.
Warmly,
Your owner, who is just as thankful as you that this project is wrapped up
***
Dear Succulent:
In case you haven’t heard, I never buy plants for our house. I mean, I’ll occasionally buy a bouquet of flowers, purely for the sake of some macro photography. But houseplants? No. Because…the cats.
The cats are drawn to any living plant and feel compelled to nibble, nudge, and paw until the poor thing is eaten or destroyed. Science projects, flowers, greenery…it doesn’t matter. They attack it all.
But I saw you at the grocery store yesterday and decided to give you a chance. Maybe you are the type of plant that the cats won’t want to eat. Maybe you are different enough, pointy enough, tough enough, that they will stay way.
We can always hope, right? So, um…good luck. I sincerely hope you make it.
Affectionately,
One who rooting for you
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