A Tall Girl's Adventures in a Tiny World

 Since March 13, 2020, our family has been together, 24/7, in our 1200-square-foot home. Yes, of course, we take walks and run occasional errands to get out of the house...but we all work and school here now. I feel somewhat guilty saying it, but I will miss this phase when it's over. All the togetherness can be intense, but I love having my children close by all the time, hearing their funny conversations and ridiculous dinner table banter. I love Chris cooking dinner most evenings and sharing all the household responsibilities; in fact, I think he's doing more of the household stuff now than I am.  With full awareness that in a few months life will go back to a more normal pace, I hope, now that two vaccines are available, I am trying to catalog all these good moments and special days. Happy is 15 now and will be driving in less than a year. He wants to get a job. I know soon he will be living on his own and I'll see him so much less. I wonder if he's tired or annoyed

Zippy is an old soul, I’m sure of it. Recycled. Determined to do better this time around. My sister is similar - always wise beyond her years, deep convictions, high anxiety, overthinking most decisions. I wonder, in fact, if anxious people are all recycled souls. Like perhaps we who are anxious know now, this time around, how harsh life can be, all the many ways we can be hurt physically and emotionally. (However, I wonder, too, if others of us, like me, are anxious because we haven't been here before and we don’t know what to expect? Hmm...may have to work on this theory.) I like the idea of souls recycling. Like perhaps when we leave this particular Earth Suit, our souls go through a cleaning process. Some might come back squeaky clean, without memory or experience stored away. But others come back with residue. Little bits of memory stuck on them, ground in. Jake does seem to be in touch with memories from another life. Remember how, when he was very little, he used to talk of