The dog. The house. There, but they don’t interest her anymore. Almost five years now that her companion was struck down by a car. They’d separated a few months prior to the accident. If people imagine estrangement makes grief easier, they’re wrong. The last of the three children about to move on and out, an exhausting life on the road, endless money hassles. Friends, of course, and more than enough occupations to burst the seams on any life whatsoever.

Behind the smile, the heart aches. Par for the course.

“La tête est pleine mais le coeur n’a pas assez.” (Lassa de Sela, La Marée haute)