When I got up this morning, I saw that the lead story in the Northern KY news concerns the trial. Jury selection begins the day after tomorrow. If I were wise, I would probably ignore all the coverage, leave the articles unread or unwatched — I know that what is to come will be ugly in ways I would not have anticipated as recently as last weekend when I drove up there. But I read and watch, at least in part to know what is openly thought or known, and occasionally in the hope that I’ll find a bit of information of which I was unaware.
Closer to home, the Spawn has had a sore throat for a couple of days, and because we learned that at least one of her classmates has strep, she and I went to the local “urgent care center”, or as some call it, the “Doc-in-a-box.” Urgency was not necessarily on the menu today — we spent three hours in the waiting room — but the staff was caring, pleasant, and professional en route to telling us that what the Spawn has is not strep, but rather a bad cold. In a small town moment, the doctor on duty was the father of a young man I taught in the Spring, when I thought I might have to leave late in the term. Even so, I was taken aback when he said, “You’re on sabbatical this term, right? My son said you had some family business to handle in — Ohio?”
“Kentucky,” I said, “But yeah, pretty much.” He didn’t pursue it further, and as I said, apart from the lag it was a good visit, but all the same, it’s a reminder that the next few weeks will be a grind. But at least all the Spawn has is a cold.
Professor Mondo 
Wish I could tell you the long days are over…but you know better than that. Know that there are many others grieving with you and praying for you even if we can never fully know what you are experiencing. One day at a time.
Speaking of spawn I was reminded while dropping spawn 1 (aka Zach) in Abilene that there are smaller fishbowls than Newberry.
You’ll be in my prayers. I hope the Spawn is feeling better.