Fortunately, I was at a beautiful, Northern Idaho wooded retreat center for the weekend. I missed the final Kavanaugh vote, and, by the time I had cell service again, I no longer cared that he “won”. The sad truth is that we all lost in so many ways, thanks to our elected representatives and their behavior. I look forward to the day when we all start demanding more from them.

I am also happy to stop reliving every day the personal issues that the SCOTUS drama awoke in me. I relived my time with the Catholic school guys who came over to our neighborhood and then went home to their white privilege families who looked down on us. Additionally, I  relived my own sexual assault and all the ways I protected the perp and buried my own feelings. And then, the discussions about alcohol, blacking out, and drinking to excess, which has plagued my family for generations and altered the course of my life.

No doubt, this drama awoke pain in many women, and we need to start taking care of ourselves while letting the pain see the light of day so that we can heal. In the midst of it all, I started attending Al Anon, something I should have done much earlier in my life. I believe Al Anon meetings will  be of great benefit to me even though I move around so much, and I plan on documenting the journey. The program seems to have some pros and cons, which I am now working though. They ask that you give it time to make sense and I am committed to that process!

Nature brings me the most joy, and this weekend I was out at the peak of the northern Washington and Idaho fall color. Today, fog has settled on the forest outside my windows and I plan on hunkering down with a good book and enjoying the pre-winter solitude.