Ballad of Consolation miracatabey, January 9, 2026August 25, 2026 I am back here with something very personal, and it has to be that way. This part of the internet isn’t advertised anywhere; if you are here, it’s because you found it, if you have found it, you probably wanted to. This time, I will console myself a little. Are things not going well? No, things are just ongoing within their own usual process. But the cliche of “enjoy the process, not the outcome” doesn’t work. We all know that we weren’t meant to be that way. We want to see the result, and sometimes we need a bit of it at certain checkpoints. I need something solid to hold on to, right now. No, not optimism, not good vibes, and certainly not a supernatural being. I look for what’s real, what’s right here in front of me (what I actually have and what actually matters). You can call it gratitude if you will, perhaps rationalizing… But I would call it grounding if I could be fully objective about myself. What I did is simple: I made a little inventory of the things that I have. Ballad of Consolation A place enough to think, enough to make No bombs falling around, for now Food I can cook Days filled with rituals Less, chosen carefully Individuals, not crowds The ability to decide and execute Chances given Identity as a mix, not a category Strength to reject Disappointments, not victimhoods Doubts keeping alert Values being tested Health, as it stands today Works that illness or death cannot undo Ideas crossing the line into action Ethics that still means something Stillness Focus Risk Dedication The possibility of going on… Music: Telemann’s Sonata in F Major, TWV 41:f2, Largo Reflections