Day 5 - 242 -- End of Day Two

Today is day two and is almost over. I ran some errands in the heat and humidity of the morning. Traffic on the roads and in the grocery stores is beginning to increase. Students are returning to town as classes begin next Tuesday.  Grocery shopping in the next week will be a futile endeavor since anyone moving into an apartment or residence will be laying in the staples and essentials -- making huge groceries. This often leaves store shelves empty -- and not only the grocery stores. 

In the afternoon, I headed out to an afternoon gathering with my colleagues to celebrate my retirement. It was a lovely gathering at a local restaurant with yummy scones and a fantastic cake decorated with summer berries and white chocolate shavings. Very very tasty. Conversations involved much laughter -- a good time. The farewell processes are part of the journey, though there are mixed emotions from the good-bye aspect. That is where most anxiety resides -- the nebulous nature of what the new normal will entail. New routines become necessary, but setting that without knowing what the goals or purposes will be brings a challenge. The research goals provide a place to begin but asking the questions, 'what should I do this evening?' still seems foreign. Perhaps I need to learn to give myself permission to watch a movie without doing three other things at the same time <smile>. It is a whole new world, I expect.

A song that ran through my mind most of today speaks about the future. In some way it made me feel I was missing today to focus on tomorrow, but while I did my best to be present today, the title of this song does deal with the future. I've loved this song since I first heard the full musical. It closes an Act so summarizes many stories in one number. The hopes and expectations of numerous characters foreshadow what occurs in the following Act. The musical counterpoint brings each story into the whole until the entire piece becomes a cacophony of juxtaposed melodies -- not unlike the rising anxieties of a major life change. Yet, there is a positive note of excitement along with the fear. The version chosen comes from an anniversary celebration for the musical with many well-known past cast members performing. Enjoy!

One Day More -- Les Miserables (10th anniversary concert at Royal Albert Hall ft. Colm Wilkerson, Lea Solonga, Phillip Quast, Michael Ball and other cast members)