Playing the Grace Card

There is one bright spot of Beni’s ongoing battle with hyperemesis gravidarum: being able to witness the collective grace, love, and charity of our friends and family. We cannot thank enough all of those who have helped out in one way or another. I credit our loved ones for getting my sickly wife from a state of bedroom semi-permanence to an occasional sofa sitting. So to all of you, muchas gracias for your grace, and merci beaucoup for your mercy.

Olivia, for her part, has turned to the healing power of cards and drawings: every time we’re in a store that carries greeting cards, she insists that we pick one up to pick up one’s spirits; during free time at school, she creates pictures upon pictures of her mom—I think she believes that she can will Beni back to health with each successive pen- and brushstroke.