This is what things are like now....

Friday, my son took a half day off work. He picked up the youngest from school before 3pm and they went exploring and offroading.

I got home about 5:30pm. He met me in the driveway and excitedly began telling me about their adventure and the things he was able to do with his truck. He has a kitten now. The kitten goes everywhere with him, including on offroad adventures.

The youngest had already gone to a board game cafe with friends for the evening. I told the big guy I had to get some laundry going and get my minivan fixed. He offered to work on it for me, but asked if his GF could come over.

Sure.

OK... Can you make us chicken stew?

Sure.

Ok... It's her laundry night but she wants to come here. Can she do laundry here?

(sigh) Sure.

He comes in two hours later from the garage, with GF and her laundry basket.

I leave supper for them and go pick up other kid from the cafe. Other kid wants to bring a friend home with her.

Sure.

We get home, and big kid and GF are gone. Daughter and friend go crazy playing with the kitten. Then they take the kitten to her room and I can hear video games and ongoing kitten play and teen girls squealing and laughing. I chill on the couch listening to old rock songs. After almost an hour I call the big kid.

He and GF have gone out to pick up nachos and cheese and other goodies and buy new board games so we can all hang out and play board games and Uno and eat when they get back.

Sure.

Saturday the big kid goes for the day with a local 4x4 club, and DD goes to her BF's house. I meet a friend for coffee in the morning, work in the garage and workout for the afternoon. My kids and their friends are all here in the evening to empty my refrigerator again.

I get a message on my phone that DD is getting an award for academic performance at school, and there's a ceremony next week.

Today, me and DD went to the neighbors for coffee and breakfast. I'm working for the afternoon and evening. There's a kitten asleep on the widow sill beside me while I'm typing this.

I still feel some inner turmoil, but the deep profound longing, and the profound rumination is subsiding. The desire to just make her see, see how good this all is, the longing to have her with me here, to see and enjoy the goodness here.... All of that is going away. I'm realizing more and more how much deep goodness is here and how healthy this all is.
The goodness of stability and ease of having friends around is really profound.

I sometimes go for in excess of 24 hours without even giving my wife a thought.