(no elephants were harmed in the writing of this post)

When the long fuse finally lit the bomb that blew up my life,

someone said:

“You get through this like you eat an elephant – one bite at a time.”

I wasn’t hungry for elephant.

But day by day, I did my best to eat:

Though the phone calls, questions, and answers

Through the arrangements, the issues, the paperwork

Through the caring for my people, deeply impacted as I was

Through the numbness, flashes of rage, and the sadness so encompassing I couldn’t always see my way out

Through the hurt underneath and a white flag surrender to self-care,

Through the fog of illusion — what I thought I knew, who I thought I knew — towards clarity.

I’m sick of elephant…

…but I’m still eating.