All things considered, Eela was in a pretty good mood after getting back from the hospital. Her back was doing alright, though she was keeping the cane on hand, and the conversation with the volunteer coordinator had buoyed her. The reality was that she had been thinking about doing something that wasn’t ‘work’ for awhile now. Something for her. Giving some care to NICU babies just fit in so many ways, especially right now as she was carefully unravelling the threads of her life. Examining that painful time after her parents died and she had given birth to Jourin prematurely was an important one. She wouldn’t bring that into the NICU, but having clarity around her own experience it would help her remember what those parents might need in terms of support.

As she stepped back into her penthouse, Eela exhaled a deep breath and pulled out the hairpins that held her grey scarf in place, and unwrapped the head covering. Grabbing some water and making some herbal tea, Eela grabbed a novel and a poetry book and went out onto her patio to rest awhile before Kenzo arrived.

~Eela Dasca, Lt. Gov.