For Danielle

You will hold many jobs in your lifetime. Like—a lot. And each will shape you differently. Get ready. My career journey has been really weird. But I guarantee you, no one has a very consistent type of journey. I started off at NIS as a file clerk and then I was moved to this weird, stuffy office where I scanned old remittances ALL DAY LONG. And I didn’t have a smartphone back then to listen to podcasts or music or anything. It was rough. Rough enough to keep my eyes fixed to the clock on the wall throughout each workday. Plus, the office was so old and boring. Gah, I'm sure things have changed and improved, but back then, it wasn't great for a 16-year old eager to do something more meaningful. But...my coworkers took care of me. And that made an otherwise snail-paced job more tolerable. They all were overly-accommodating, but in a nice way, and included me in their inside jokes to make me feel like part of the team. I appreciate that so much, even now. Even though there wer...

Know this—I do grieve for not being there for you. Physically. I know what it's like to occupy a single bed for years and years. But I also know what it's like to share it with a sister. As much as you were not always the best sleeper, I miss that. The purpose of this blog is to have open, honest conversations with you. And tell you things that are helpful but sometimes hard to explain. Daddy and I became really great friends in December of 2008. That's the year Damani left for school in Cuba. It's also the year you and mommy went to the states. Daddy and I were alone for several months. To be honest, tears are surfacing as I write this—I don't know why. Daddy and I were just okay before then, we didn't talk much. There were more neutral interactions than outright great ones. But you all left, and suddenly we were all the other had. And the house was dead silent a lot. So I went out with him more. We went to Andall's together a lot more, we went on lo...