All Rhodes Lead Here

You’ve got the sweetest, kindest heart, Buddy. It wouldn’t matter what you looked like, you’d still be my angel.

You could start over any day of the week, at any time of the year, at any point in your life, and it was fine.

Sure, I’d still scream if a bat snuck back into the house or if I saw another mouse, but I knew I’d be able to figure out a solution if it happened. Maybe you didn’t have to get over your fears completely to conquer them. Maybe if you just faced them in general that counted. Or at least that’s what I wanted to believe.

The reminder of how short life was had blossomed in my head and stayed there,

“Nobody in their right mind would let you walk away from them. Not once and no way in hell twice, angel.”

She was beautiful like you are. You-can’t-look-away gorgeous, my uncle used to say,”

I hate confrontations. I have to be really mad to raise my voice. Most stuff doesn’t bother me anyway. My feelings don’t get hurt that easily,

The silence was comfortable. Comforting. The small sounds of the birds in the trees were a reminder that there was more than just us. That life carried on in ways that had nothing to do with our human lives.

“Because I didn’t think about it.” I shrugged. “And because I didn’t want to be more of a baby. You already saw me cry enough.”

I had to take care of myself, and I had to do it now. I could always come back and do this hike again. I wasn’t quitting. I wasn’t.