All things considered...

The most common refrain I have heard this week when I’ve asked someone how they are doing is, “Well, all things considered…” Basically, outside of the blatant disregard for the US constitution, the continued detention of innocent adults and children, and the government protecting pedophiles – our personal lives are ok. But the longer this goes on, the thinner that line becomes.

This week I felt tired and unmotivated with little interest in socializing. Not unlike the look our dog Sriracha is giving in the photo accompanying this essay. These are all red flags that my emotional scales are tipping toward depression. While in a macro context this is totally understandable, in the micro my life is cozy, healthy, and safe. The dissonance is taking a toll, and I am witnessing the strain in people’s faces in person and in posts across the internet.

So, with today’s blog, I am going to try a different tactic. I am going to share some good things that I’ve experienced or witnessed. When it feels like the world is on fire (and the firefighters aren’t doing their job), it can feel tone deaf to share good news. But we are not built to live in this vacuum of doom. There must be moments of encouragement that help buoy our hope and keep our optimism alive.

This doesn’t mean we are not still paying attention to the atrocities and calling for change or action (any action really, just something, please elected officially DO SOMETHING). It just means that I believe we can multitask. Also, you don’t need me listing out all the super shitty things going on. If you’re like me, you are not only witnessing these real-life nightmares while awake but then revisiting them in sleep. I’ll spare you the regurgitation.

Ok, good news in my personal life includes… drumroll (and a small TMI warning), my pap smear results came back clear! I had no reason to believe they wouldn’t, but after being diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, I no longer take clean test results for granted. I was actually a little surprised my relief after reading the text message from my doctor’s office, but then realized it was almost one year to the day of my diagnosis, and the body never forgets.

Next, in two weeks, I will be filling a bucket-list goal of mine: I am delivering a TEDx Talk at my alma mater, Northeastern University in Boston. This has been in the works for months now, but I finally have permission to talk about it. The title of my talk is, “There are no winners at the Grief Olympics,” and I cannot wait to share it with all of you when the video is available. I know a lot of people have questions about how Ted Talks work, so perhaps I will plan a post about that once I get through my own.

On a more global scale, do you remember hearing about a little boy with a rare metabolic disease who was the first to undergo gene editing using CRISPR technology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP)? I must have had a dozen people send me the article and I celebrated each time for what this meant for the rare genetic disease community. However, the long-term effectiveness of the treatment was still to TBD. Well, it’s been a year now since little KJ received his first treatment and not only have the treatments worked, but he is THRIVING.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean curing all genetic disorders is imminent. Among other factors, CRISPR technology is still wildly expensive. Though as technology improves, prices should decrease, enabling more studies to be conducted and the eventual approval of the technology for more genetic diseases. Regardless, this is a HUGE step forward and anyone in the rare disease community should be celebrating the continued good health of this little boy, his brave parents, and genius medical team. You can read more here and here.

In other good news, The Nation, a progressive magazine, officially nominated the people of Minneapolis for the Nobel Peace Prize. Obviously, this is simply a nomination and not a determination of whether they will receive the actual prize. Regardless, it is vindictively sweet to dream about a group of compassionate citizens winning the Nobel Peace Prize for defending themselves against a man who is known to covet this very award.

Last but not least, we survived January! February being the shortest month, means that it is practically March and then spring is right around the corner. Sunshine and leaves on trees will be here so, so soon. In the meantime, I would really love a day or two above 32 degrees so that I can once again pull my car into my driveway without worrying about sideswiping the three-foot-tall icebergs of shoveled snow currently residing there.

All things considered, congratulations on surviving another week. Now go let yourself disassociate with The Olympics and Sunday’s Green Day/Bad Bunny concert. In the words of Benito himself, “Vamo a disfrutar, que nunca se sabe si nos queda poco.” – Bad Bunny, “DtMF”. Translation: Let’s enjoy, because you never know how much time is left.

Please comment below with some of your good news!

Photo ID: A black dog with brown paws and eyebrows is laying across a stair on a wooden stair case with reddish pink treads. Her head is resting between the bars of the railing, looking away from the camera.