Relaxation and Rifles

I'm back home after a long weekend in Washington, and it's sixty degrees and sunny here in New York. A notable improvement over yesterday's snowstorms.

Being back home for a couple days was very, very good. It was relatively conflict-free, as far as family events go, and we had some good bonding times including

• getting a massage with my sister
• a never-ending game of Risk with my brothers
• helping my mom pick out a new setting for her engagement ring
• going shooting with Dad and watching Zach shoot a handgun for the first time (yikes!)

It was good to see that Mom has been improving since last week, but it is also clear that she's not completely better. The trip has raised questions for me about whether she will ever be completely better and what my new role is as her daughter. I spent a good amount of the weekend trying to convince her not to go to work today, but to rest for a few more days. But she's pretty sure that if she doesn't go back to teaching immediately, she may never go back. It's difficult to watch her grappling with her identity now that she has no kids at home and is being told that she may have to finish her career early.

Speaking of rest, I got a lot of it myself, which is odd considering it was a family holiday. I took some homework but didn't do any of it, and I was able to realize for the first time in awhile that there is a world outside of New York and NYU and that my work is not the sum total of my life. There is, in fact, a light at the end of the tunnel and it was a little easier to see from the outside. The next three weeks before the semester ends will be pretty intense, but I think I can handle it if I buckle down, and then I will REALLY be able to enjoy the break next month. (Note to write about later: possible indefinite break...)