These are definitely *"trying times"* in which we live. 

I have always tried my best to stay positive and to keep myself moving along with a good attitude and some optimism and hope that tomorrow will bring something better.


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But sometimes even the best of us just run out of energy, and it just feels like life goes from *"hopeless"* to *even worse.* And you start to wonder whether there will *ever* be an end to the stream of depressing news. 

I'm sorry if this is going to be a bit of a *bummer* of a post, but *part* of the purpose of this blog I have been keeping for almost *four years* is to serve as a sort of catharsis through writing. And I need to count on it to be just that, as I try to make sense of the past seven days.


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## *Bad News DOESN'T Come in Threes...*

Late last week, we learned that our long-time friend Bruce has an inoperable brain tumor, and has perhaps months to live.

Immediately *after* that, our friend Jim lost his battle with cancer and moved on to another plane of existence. That was just five days ago.

Then our daughter's boss' daughter and son-in-law were hospitalized after an overdose. Both 23, he died, she lived but remains critical... we only met them a couple of times, but they were bright young sparks.


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Yesterday, the husband of a dear friend who passed from cancer last February was found dead, slumped over the steering wheel of his truck. He was 41... most likely complications from neglected diabetes, but suicide hasn't been ruled out.

Also yesterday, our long-time friend Amy — whom I'd periodically attend retreats and workshops with — passed away suddenly; she was in her 50's. 

Meanwhile, we just learned that one of my wife's counseling clients who has also become a bit of a family friend... is now in Intensive care with Covid *"complications."*


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## *Numbness...*

There has just been so much death and darkness over the past seven days that it feels like my *"get up and go"* has basically gotten up and *went.* 

And I have reached a point where I just feel *numb* and sort of *blank.*

Someone could walk into my office right now and announce that an asteroid is heading this way and we will all die in a few hours... and all I'd be able to do would be shrug and say *"Oh, OK...."*

You get to a point where you just don't *HAVE* any more... any more sadness, any more tears, any more emotion, any more *ANY*thing. 


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I'm forcing myself to write this because writing *does* help and if I can just *dump* it all into words, maybe I get at least get a decent night's sleep.

And that's about all I have to say today... I apologize in advance for the depressing post!

Thanks for reading!

***How about YOU? How is your week going? As always, comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!***

***(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — NOT A CROSSPOST!!!)
Created at 20210113 23:40 PST
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