Early AM rise and off to Jikoji. I arrived just a minute or two after 7, but I ran into Michael and his Niece heading out and chatted a bit. It worked out, as the Tea Ceremony delayed Zazen. It was just Karn, Cade, and "Prachi," an intern staying for a month or so. Breakfast was nice, and I was glad I brought eggs up. A staff shortage issue resulted in my offering to stay Tuesday - Wednesday, but later in the day, it turned out that Michael would stick around. My presence on Wednesday would be helpful, so I'll do that. I'll also learn more about the AM rituals, which will come in handy if there's a next time. I'm looking forward to learning that. It's time. I was able to get into an 11 am appointment (I barely made it) for the 1st stage of the crown. The dentist said I was fortunate that the break wasn't worse due to another fracture that could have caused the whole tooth to fall apart. It wasn't pleasant or overly painful, and the temporary one will be replaced with a permanent one on 12/04. Jen's 1st day back at work seemed to go well, which is good. I managed a few Jikoji tasks, including some reporting on donation revenues and fixing a minor issue with the feedback form. I tracked my missing credit card down to leaving it at "The Counter" on GNO. Jen and I picked it up and got "Flying Dutchman" at In 'n Out. I ended the night with an intense, moving conversation with Lauren about her association with CVI as a diagnosis of issues she's struggled with silently for 20 years. It was heartbreaking to comprehend not having known and to admit my ignorance was likely behind frustrations with her not doing things like ordering food or asking for a fork or other 'typical' stuff that somebody with CVI might struggle with. The call was good, and I'm so proud of her maturity and strengths. It's still hard as a parent - it feels like I missed something critical that could have made a difference in the quality of her life so much sooner. But I'll be there for her if this proves to be the case.
