A flood of images and memories. Reveries wrapped inside of reveries. I thought of my sister, Jamianne, and I burst into tears. For her and for me. For everything she’ll never know. For everything I'll never be again.
Thanks, Bob! I don’t think I spoke a lot about these experiences with you, but definitely want to hear your thoughts if something here resonated with you.
Thanks! The piece evolved since class and I’m thankful for your ideas and comments on the earlier drafts! I appreciate you. I’m so excited Im getting to read your work here on Substack!
Joe, your essay captures the weight of love when it’s inseparably tied to responsibility.
The moment in the treatment room is seared into my mind—hope, despair, and fierce tenderness colliding in one breath.
Your honesty about resentment doesn’t diminish your love; it humanizes it, showing how profound care often exists alongside exhaustion.
“For her and for me” feels like the heart of this piece, a quiet mantra balancing the tension between self-preservation and devotion.
Thank you for articulating the ache and resilience of family bonds with such clarity and courage.
Thank you so much for your words here, Kuriakin! I appreciate them so very much.
This is amazing. I thought I knew you well but we would have so much more to talk about
Thanks, Bob! I don’t think I spoke a lot about these experiences with you, but definitely want to hear your thoughts if something here resonated with you.
...this piece turned out so beautifully...appreciate your raw unfiltered impressions, rembrances, and thought in here...
Thanks! The piece evolved since class and I’m thankful for your ideas and comments on the earlier drafts! I appreciate you. I’m so excited Im getting to read your work here on Substack!
…let’s rock king…
You ARE heeding beauty‘s call, Joe. What a raw, honest, and beautiful piece, I know it‘ll stay with me.