A Brief Release

Hi friends.

Hello from a hotel room in Chicago, where I am somehow still on tour for these two books of mine. I spent some time yesterday stress-eating candy in bed whilst scrolling through the news. Totally normal behavior, I muttered to myself. Finally I just got up and took a shower and I stayed in that shower long enough until I felt better.

How are we all doing? Are we going to make it to the other side OK? If you’re reading this right now, and feeling a little rattled, just know there’s a hot shower waiting for you today, whenever you need it. Or a snack. Or a drink. You could just shut this screen right now and take a walk instead and I wouldn’t be offended in the slightest.

I’m happy to be in Chicago, my hometown, for the first time in five years. I keep saying I’m thrilled to be here, and I am. I feel a connection to this city deep in my bones. Particularly during this time of year, the fall, when the morning skies look so different, just on the verge of icy, and the trees take on that golden, burned feeling.

I stayed with my old friend Wendy McClure the first night I was in town and though we’ve stayed in touch digitally, there’s nothing like that first chat in person after all that time. What a relief. We’re still ourselves. Altered a bit by time and this American life, but we’re still the same people. She has always been one of my favorite people to talk to about books—and life.

We took a walk early in the morning through her neighborhood. She lives close to woods and water. It was exhilarating. There was a cemetery too, which was closed, but we found a gate that had been pried open, and we squeezed through it and took a private walk through the grounds.

The whole morning reminded me so much of my childhood. I had a cornfield in my backyard growing up and there were lots of little creeks and parks around. I remembered that feeling of walking and feeling all alone and on an adventure in the crisp, fresh air. That sense of being safe and happy. Before I knew about the way the world worked. Those days when I was experiencing everything for the first time.

That’s what it felt like to return to Chicago yesterday.