Although this last push of coursework has not been what I would ever describe as fun, I have been receiving moral support from all quarters. Some furrier than others, as you can see.

Today my dad and I visited my childhood home as well as one of my alma maters. For many years I saw these places through the lenses of my failings, but today I was suffused with warmth and could not stop smiling.

gratitude: looking back on a childhood filled with joy and creativity and love · getting to grow up in small-town and big-city America · less than a week of coursework to go