It was the worst of times; it was the worst of times. I’m an optimist at heart, but there were days this year when looking on the bright side seemed like the act of a lunatic.
Every day I felt the heaviness in my heart. Then, one morning in August, I walked down our dirt road with the dog. Mist was rising off Long Pond.
When we got home, I found a small stone among the snapdragons and joe-pye weed in our garden. Someone had painted it with a rainbow.
On one side were the words “You matter.” This turned out to be one of a series of painted rocks that an anonymous person, or persons, have been leaving around my neighborhood.