My mother hated that word. Crap. She thought it was ugly. She wasn’t wrong. And that’s exactly why I want to start here—because this part of the story is ugly, uncomfortable, and real. I haven’t been feeling well. And because of that, I haven’t really been able to work. Not because I’m completely down and out every single day, but because the health issues I’m dealing with are wildly intermittent. I never quite know when they’re going to show up. Add in two to three doctor’s

It’s been a long time since I’ve felt an overwhelming urge to write like I do right now. At the end of January, I kept telling myself I should post something. Just to stay consistent. Just to say I had. Every day as the month crept closer to its end, the thought sat there: I need to write a blog post. And then February arrived. And now I feel compelled to write. So much has happened over the last few months—especially the last two—that a story has begun to take shape. One tha