rollercoaster

Okay, as a metaphor, it's just too easy and very cliche - it does, however, perfectly reflect this past week of life and death; of joy and pain. I found out on Wednesday that I lost a very near and dear uncle to a heart attack, setting a tone for a somber week, for sure. Arrangements were made, plans shifted, and I did my best to remember him fondly and allow my mind to return, for a time, to the cocelebratory birthday weekend I would share with Miriam on Sunday and at our friend Emily's birthday cookout which would take place the night before that. I made it to the weekend, relatively together, and enjoyed myself while the mosquitoes enjoyed us all in a backyard in Roslindale on Saturday night and then hit the trails of Harold Parker with ThomP, Miriam, and Leah early (relatively speaking) on Sunday afternoon. We got back to town with barely enough time to clean up and head into Union Square for birthday dinner with so many of our good friends at Cantina la Mexicana, followed by yummy St Germain cocktails, courtesy of Kate. It really couldn't have been a better day!

The next day brought me back to the harsh reality of my uncle's funeral which - I don't need to tell you - was difficult. He was a much beloved man with a lot of friends and family who had all benefited from his generosity over the years.

And as there are sorrows, there is elation; it's the cycle of how we live our lives.

So, as if on queue, my phone rang yesterday afternoon, and it was Courtney from Rodale calling to let me know that the publisher was formally offering me the contract for my second and their sixth edition of the Bicycling Guide to Complete Bicycle Maintenance and Repair!

Over the moon.

I've hoped this has been coming for several months now, but a comedy of errors, missed connections, and budget reviews left just enough uncertainty to keep me from sharing until this moment. Today the contract is being drawn-up and the files are being overnighted.

Tomorrow is one more day of brilliant grey heartache as we deliver my uncle for his final rest, back to the place where he grew up.

That sinking feeling, again.

I will miss my uncle, like so many will, but I also know that in death, as in life, he wants every one of us to enjoy life for everything it's worth at every moment and to spread that around at every chance. So for him, up it is.