So the kids are always asking me, "Why are all the parents in books written for kids dead? Or in jail? Or mentally incapacitated/kidnapped/mind-controlled/abducted by aliens/drug addicts/lost at sea/away at war/marionettes of the fascist regime/childlike hippie cult members?" To which I answer, "Because that's good fiction. And you forgot evil overlords."
But really. The answer is that good, responsible, available, eager-to-listen-and-make-sandwiches-with-the-crusts-cut-off parents are always meddling in their kids' business and therefore run the risk of swooping in and solving everything for our protagonist while s/he is busy unsticking the peanut butter from the roof of her/his mouth. And it's a rule of good fiction that the protagonist must solve his/her own problem.
Which is why I'd like to be able to write that I clawed my way out of the dragon's cave single-handedly, Sword of Reason strapped to my back, Dagger of Self-Confidence in my boot, Ninja Throwing Stars of I Kicked Anxiety's Ass tucked in my pockets. Because that would make for an exciting Return from Obscurity blog entry. But oh, no. Folks had to come swooping in and get all deus ex machina on my ass with their Elvis e-cards, emails, I've-been-there-too phone calls and referalls to good doctors and info on meds. And then there were the You Make My Day awards, the Christmas cards, the packages, and the just-checking-in messages left in the comments for months and months.
Seriously: Thank you to all of you for peeking your heads into the cave to check up on me, and the occasional lending of the Mace of Good Friendship and the Big Honkin' Battle Ax of Community.
This scarf brought me back to knitting. (Ravelry link.) So I have Larissa to thank for that. There's been knitting and smiling and blog reading and raveling and eating and working and loads and loads of other things that were absent during the dark days. For some reason, it's taken me forever to get back to blogging. But I haven't really felt complete for a while. And I think I know why. Somehow, I think pushing the "post" button below might do it for me. It's good to be back. Thank you, thank you, thank you for waiting.
