Lavender buds in hot milk

Lavender buds in hot milk.

I heat this on a stovetop in South Florida,

feeling OK and also lost, but mostly curious.

Sprinkled on top, the buds float on the milky surface.

Lavender is soothing.

Drinking a cup of hot milk with lavender in a hot bath—Self-soothing.

We do what we can.

A better remedy may lie in confronting collective disconnection, isolation.

Communing with nature, we put our own natures at peace.

In Florida, I long for a soul-friend.

For the scent of lavender in sunshine.

For now I do what I can. There is joy in life, yes.

But sometimes you just need to…

I take baths everyday.

And keep my head above water.