when everything goes to hell, the people who stand by you without flinching—they are your family

I have a good life. It takes a bit of shaking up to remind me of that sometimes. I have a great family. Terrific friends, the sort who listen rather than waiting for their chance to talk. I have a job. There is a roof over my head, thanks to the open-hearted grace of two of my friends, and I eat well (and often), too. My 'stuff' is stored indoors at another friend's house, and I have access to it as needed; one shouldn't even be able to ask for that sort of generosity. My furniture lives at another friends' place, for which I don't recall even needing to ask--that's the sort of friends they are, that they would come through when the situation arose, their first thoughts being to take care of the situation and only later to sort out the details. The world is rarely forthcoming with that sort of kindness.

It's easy to see the dark side, to focus on what's missing and how much better or easier or more pleasurable it could be. But it's really pretty good, and I'm really very grateful.

[the title quotation is by Jim Butcher, from Proven Guilty]