Five Minute Friday :: Half

• Five Minute Friday :: Half Linkup

The song "It's Getting Better" by the late Cass Elliot is about a love match, but it can be true of any aspect of life:

Once I believed that when love came to me
It would come with rockets, bells and poetry
But with me and you it just started quietly and grew
And it's not hard to see
That it isn't half of what it's going to turn out to be

Sometimes grief and loss and unmet expectations overwhelm me. Does that happen to you? But I love love love mornings! The morning light, breakfast with berries that doesn't happen year round but this is summer, and an imagination-fueled prospectus of what the day may hold – even when it's a routine everyday – gets me smiling. Isn't it about grace, surprise, serendipity and unexpected joys?

If you know me at all you know I love summer. Sunshine, warmth, city sidewalks, urban beaches, and ocean breezes. But maybe even better, if summer's here, my major new year is on the way—check out my opening image.

I've written about my several new years:

• The first Sunday of Advent
• January 1 of a new calendar year
• My late January birthday

all of which make solid opportunities for new starts. But probably like many others, late summer is my main new year, my primary new beginning. Memories of a new academic year ranging from kindergarten through a series of graduate and professional schools energize my hope; there's nothing halfway like it.

Schools around here began again on Wednesday, August 12. Something about that date doesn't feel half as exciting and fulfilling as when I was coming up and school started the Thursday after Labor Day.

I opened with a song about human expectations that romantic love will arrive with bells, whistles, and songs (sometimes it does), along with the reality that love in any kind of relationship frequently sneaks up on both persons and almost imperceptibly becomes deeper, wider, and stronger. When you look back you can see all the increments along the way, including the halfway mark.

The morning of every day. The dawn of a new school year (how poetic of me). Don't all of those start less than halfway and grow into more than we ever thought could be?

Did you know:
"In order to be considered half as good
a woman must be twice as good.
Luckily that is not difficult."
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https://whatsyourgrief.com/grieving-an-online-friend-cybergrief/