A to B through Z

This is something I wrote in early 2017 and lightly edited this week. I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. How are things? Good! Well, you know...not really. I mean pretty good, considering. Those conversations I can handle, but my least favorite bits are the silences after a few minutes. Maybe I explained how mom was doing or how he died for the morbidly curious. The platitudes and the chit chat is done and there's just silence. I didn't know it at first, but I've slowly learned that this is where people feel something profound is supposed to go. Something the movies taught us has to happen, it's right there in the script. You're supposed to provide the neat bow on the tire fire that is your emotional state to assure all present that "everything happens for a reason" or "every cloud has a silver lining". I hate that silence. I wish I could say that I hope you never have to experience grief, but obviously that's impossible. ...