Comfort

The sun is trying to penetrate the coast fog. Maybe today. It's been a long grey May. The temperature at 58 degrees fahrenheit feels moderate. Today is Wednesday.

Where do you find comfort? Lately, it has been in music and the voice of Cécile McLorin Salvant - jazz vocalist, barefoot historian, bridge from Ella and Sarah to now. The singing range is like her life experience range and the talent she possesses is brings deep comfort because she demonstrates an ability to weave like few others.

Comfort comes in the familiar sound of the washer as it cleans the sheets and towels left by a house guest who enjoyed their time here; and who we enjoyed hosting. And the fact that we don't have to stomp on the towels and sheets to get them clean and then hang them outside on a line for a whole day these days - is a blessing. Folding is easy.

When things get very crazy busy, the move to "comfort" is smart. It is a place that allows you to lift the burden of being confused and frustrated. Sometimes, it's ice cream with some great cabernet chocolate sauce, or it could be a walk in a place that gives you a chance to get into sunlight, or it might mean digging around in dirt in the garden – or it could be touching the toes of a little one. The experience is the best because the energy is so sweet, so genuine, and so soft. And softness is something we don't value as much as we should.

Think about it. Everything in living as an adult in the world is hard. The demands that you be attentive, timely, accurate, patient (!), and just a little ahead of the game – at all times. It's hard and the energy can be cutting. The consequences of not being on top of things gets harder - especially as one faces age and all of the things that come along with the passage of time, like eyes going bad, memory shifts, and discomfort in probing the constant internet mail and text messages that somehow got into the claws of an algorithm. Comfort does not come with efficiency. And stories about the AI and what it means for the future of humanity – let's not even go there today.

We are left with one opportunity to balance all of it: seek comfort. Joy is another level and that is a place that cannot really be explained in 500 words! Comfort, on the other hand, seems reachable. The pants that mold to the body shape that has emerged can be comforting, as can the chair where memories, books, conversations have held us - comfort comes in just sitting. And of course, there is "comfort food" and if we are lucky, our range can go from fresh fruit to soups that hit home.

It's important that we remember to find comfort in our lives. So much that is happening these days makes people so uncomfortable. It is an old lesson - to go find comfort as you can and need.