There’s a cup of coffee in front of me. The steam rises from the hot java’s creamy sweetness and I lift the mug to my lips, blow a little, and sip it. It’s reassuring to me that I was able to wake up this morning, brew a pot of coffee, hear the birds sing outside my door, and watch as the sun lights the day. I breathe in the sweat, warm, sandy scent of earth from a faint breeze that blows through the window. I can smell salt from the nearby ocean.

This is the life. I think, taking another sip of coffee.

Maria and Cocoa are sleeping, and I’ve decided to draw inspiration from my quiet mind. I think of jobs I once worked, the people I’ve met and loved throughout my life. I reflect on the past, the present, the future of my marriage. I think of our adult children, some who don’t bother with us anymore, and I think of the children who still give us their time and love. I think back to fond memories of our family when we balanced the soccer practices for some, the band concerts for others, drama performances, and wrestling meets. The planning of vacation was a chore, but we still took trips. Buying groceries at times was a struggle but our children never went hungry and never went without winter coats or new clothes. Although the struggle was sometimes claustrophobic, we learned, evolved, lived the best life we could, we did our best to parent and give tools to each of them, and for that, Maria and I are both thankful.

2021 meant a lot to me.

The year, now almost gone, still lingers, and today draws me into my forty-eighth year of life. 2021 has been a year of changes, love, and big moves. 2022, just on the horizon, has more in store. I wanted to express how thankful, not because it’s the Christmas season, not because it’s almost a new year, not because it’s my birthday, but because I’m capable, and I have it in me to share with my readers.

So, to stray from the negative, i.e. some of our adult children "not bothering with us anymore", I will go into some positive news. We are going to be grandparents, again, attending a wedding of one of our daughters in 2022, , and are excited for it all. We will be travelling to our home state and catching up with our grandchildren, some of our family, our adult children, and after meeting some new people in our lives we are planning a trip to the beautiful state of Pennsylvania for the summer months. To top everything I've mentioned, if that is even possible, I will have some new fiction available in the spring of 2022.

Now that the energy is here, building on this blog, derived from both the plus and negative, I will leave you with…thank you for supporting me. Happy 2022 ahead, and I hope you’re reading this with good health, a solid state of mind, and that you are doing in your life what you want, wished for, and mostly, doing what you love. Maria, me, Cocoa, and Walter are going to have a great year, and wish you all the best in the future that lingers on the precipice.

Love you all! Thanks for reading, again.....

Tim Eagle

Tim Eagle is an author who lives full time, on the road, with his wife, Maria and their dog, Cocoa. He grew up in Michigan and is inspired by the dysfunction, insanity, and nepotism of rural America. His most current novella, Krae and The Vasectomus Trilogy are both available in e-Book and print. Find Tim Eagle at timeaglefiction.com or here on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Tim-Eagle/e/B004JOB5OS and on godless: https://godless.com/collections/vendors?q=Tim%20Eagle If you liked reading this, sign up on timeaglefiction.com and get alerted whenever something new is posted!