So, the last substantial post I made, I said silence no longer felt like the appropriate response to all of the heartache and loss going on all around us in 2016. And yet, I remained silent–here anyway. I continued with this thought: … in this space anyway, I choose to write love. And celebration. And happy endings. And right now, I’m struggling with finding the right moment to do that without disrespecting the pain that’s going on around me.
I also struggle with discipline and time management, but I’m not sure that conversation benefits anyone outside of those needing a sleep aid.
I’m not sure many can say they’re sad to see 2016 go. The losses were huge (yuuuge? Ugh.), the division was vast, and the “what the HELL is going on here?” was plentiful. Personally, I experienced my fair share of less-than-lovely moments, but to be fair it wasn’t that bad of a year. I was privileged enough to see four Broadway shows, including Hamilton. (Did I just post 
a gratuitous Hamilton picture? Yes, yes I did.) I got to see Alan Cumming perform at Carnegie Hall, and Anthony Bourdain stopped in my hometown for an evening of snarky conversation from a stage. I released a book I love and finished another. My husband and I had one of my most favorite vacations this year on the gulf and we discovered and devoured My Dad Wrote a Porno podcast. Seriously–check it out.
And now, 2017 is upon us. “Project Galaxy” has a title–Beneath the Stars–, a beautiful cover and is available for pre-order. We have no idea what 2017 will bring, but I do know that a good book can be a peaceful pause regardless. So, enjoy a sneak peek into Beneath the Stars, a story of loss and love, of hope and health, of found family and the legacy we lean on and leave for others.
“Ah, there’s Aquila, Sid. To the east, can you see it? Do you need my glasses?”
Sid followed his dad’s pointed finger, but the lights in the sky remained muddied in his mind. The stars to the east remained as unknown as the stars to the west. Sid considered fibbing and thought better of it. He wanted to remember, in honor of everything his dad forgot. …
At Sid’s silence, Lou pressed. “Find the brightest star east of Polaris—what’s it called?”
“Do you remember, Baba?”
Lou lowered his binoculars. “Do I remember? You insult me.” …
“You forgot to put pants on this morning,” Sid said. “It’s a fair question.” He shot his dad a smile.
“Mmm. Pants are a nuisance when all you do is sit in the house,” Lou said, pointing further west. “Vega. Find Vega.”
Vega was easy. Sid scanned further east and grinned. “Over there? Altair. At Aquila’s neck?”
“Atta boy.”
“What’s Vega part of again?”
“Lyra, the harp. Twenty-six light-years away.”
Conversation stopped as Lou scanned the sky with his binoculars and then his naked eyes. As they sat, his dad unwound. His brow, highlighted with thick gray hair, unfurrowed; his shoulders relaxed; his voice eased from the pinched, tense rasp it had become into the smooth baritone that had comforted Sid time and again when he was a boy.
Beneath the Stars is available for pre-order now, and comes to you February 16, 2017. I can’t wait for you to meet these star-gazing lovers of life.
