The Flog – The Fabry Log

It's been a difficult couple of days at the Cactus Compound and Detox Center. More physical challenges for the children, an impending hearing with the health care provider that has denied us coverage is coming up, some tough memories that flood over us, and bills. I hate bills.

But there are bright spots. A neighbor a few houses away offered us a couch and chair and last Sunday we picked them up and moved them in. Now, you have to understand what a scary proposition this is. The last couch we tried gave us a reaction--one of the kids woke up and couldn't breathe. We had to return it. We've settled for camping chairs and air mattresses because they're the safest things we could think of. My nightstand is a cardboard box. It's not the Ritz, but it works.

We treated the couch and chair like wary cats. Andrea sniffed at the leather. Yeah, it's leather. We were told that we needed leather that hadn't been treated but have you priced a leather couch lately? This one was given to us to use as long as we're here. Now the kids are sitting and reading there, doing puzzles, and just relaxing. It almost feels like a home.

Last night Kristen and I took a walk behind the house. She had her camera and snapped a few shots of the sunset. In one picture I'm waving--it's supposed to be a silhouette. In another Shannon and Kristen flank me. Two beautiful girls in their prime of life, living away from friends, encamped at the compound. The smiles are genuine but there's pain beneath the surface of our lives. Just like you. Just like all of us.

Reminds me of the line in the Jackson Browne song that says, "And at the moment that my camera happened to find you, there was just a trace of sorrow in your eyes."
Sunsets remind me of what we've come through and that we have many miles to go. They also remind me that each day is another to cherish and live fully. A sunset is just a sunset when you view it alone, but when you look at it with someone you love it's a memory. Sounds like something you would find inside a Hallmark card, but it's true.