Waiting to go home.

One of the great blessings I feel I have been given in this life is that I am pretty intuitive about people. So long as I’m not blinded by my own emotional state, I can usually read people very, very well. Because of this sense of understanding, I am frequently chosen to be someone’s ear, a “sounding board” for people who really need to think out loud, or get something off their chest while someone who understands is listening. I always feel doubly-blessed, in that I am glad to be helping someone feel better, yet, at the same time, honoured that they feel they can confide in me.

I just had a really deep conversation with someone with whom I have considered a friend, but a somewhat distant one. She really poured out her heart to me, and it meant a lot. It was, to use an oft-used phrase, “a bonding experience". I think she feels better about the situation she’s in, even if it’s only because I understand where she is. And by telling me, she no longer feels alone. I’m glad.

The sun goes down so early now. Once the time changes, it will be dark by the time I get home on most evenings. I hate the dark, and I hate being cold. Winter is my least favourite time of year, I’m afraid, because it encompasses both. The only good thing I find about winter is that it really makes me appreciate spring that much more. It’s as if I’m reborn each and every March.

My cell phone should be ringing soon, to let me know that my chariot awaits. I’ll go home, put on my jammies, and wind down. Pet the dog, snuggle the cat, check the hedgehog. I might read something. Sometimes my head feels empty of words – I need to replenish the supply every once in awhile. Nothing too heavy tonight, though – I don’t think I’m up for it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, “The Village", this past summer, and the one line that really resonated with me was one that I am trying to concentrate on. “We are grateful for the time we have been given.” It had double meanings in the movie, which I will not share for fear of spoiling it for you, but I took the obvious one to heart. And while I am sitting here, bemoaning the fact that the sun is going down early, deep down I am realizing that there were many blessings today. It was a good day.

I look forward to tomorrow. Even if it has a few minutes’ less daylight than today.