1: Some things only grow in the dark.  The best things always take a long time to develop.

2. At one of my jobs, we used to have this board where everyone would take turns putting up a quote. I waited till my last day.  It was a warning and a prophecy because I would have to take down my former colleagues and team later on. “Though the mills of God grind slowly, they grind exceedingly small.”

3. The greatest blessing. Or curse. May you get all that you want.

4. Someone once told me I needed to return to God. I replied – I never left.

5. I have occasionally wondered what I would have on my gravestone.  Who I was, what I did, etc. I think I’d be ok with “He held his ground.  He held his own.”wasn’t elite at whatever I did – lawyering, teaching, sports, music, and other endeavors.  But I was always a tough out.

6. But I think everything is cracked.  It has always been this way and will always be so.  This is for everyone.  The key variable is how to deal with it.  And that’s not a cold harsh saying as it might sound or a trite throwaway line.  It’s about finding hope and peace in the right places.

Ring the bells that still can ring.