Spring in the Desert

and random meanderings

It’s spring in the desert, which doesn’t last long before temperatures soar into triple digits. Even though April was a tough month, spring has been beautiful.

My son sent me this haiku from Basho last week. It feels good to sit quietly and watch the desert bloom.

Sitting quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows, by itself.
                                                                                                ---Matsuo Bashō, 1644 – 1694

When dealing with grief, there is a delicate balance between doing nothing and putting one foot in front of the other. Eventually it becomes easier, but there is definite joy in those moments when sprigs of grass begin to emerge.

One of my poems, “An Elegy for My Husband Lost to Covid,” was accepted to Quartet Journal, a poetry journal for female poets over the age of 50. It’s quite fun to see my words somewhere besides hidden in a file on my computer!

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My son has been working on a book for several years now. It’s written for the partners of people living with chronic pain. I’m very pleased to share it with you here, along with this blurb from the book description.

Are you in a relationship with someone who lives with chronic pain? Then this book is written for you. Chronic pain is a prison of fatigue, depression, and physical limitation that holds your fun-loving, laughing partner hostage in their own body. Recovery from chronic pain is possible through the practice of honesty, belief of self-efficacy, and the neurobiological formation of hope.

Thank you for reading Doraine’s Reflections — your support allows me to keep doing this work.

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