A small ask…

Hey,

I wanted to reach out directly for a minute.

Over the past few weeks I’ve been writing more consistently and sharing pieces about grief, caregiving, and trying to make sense of life after my mom died. A lot of you have been reading, responding, and reaching out. It’s meant a lot to me. You have no idea.

I’m also starting to take this writing work more seriously.

I’m working on a book, Calling the Birds Home, a collection of essays on grief, presence, and what it means to be human in the middle of all of this. And I’m trying to build a way to support that work while also taking care of my dad.

I don’t have it all figured out. Not even close. There’s doubt. There’s insecurity. There are days where I sit down to write and it feels like nothing is there, or like none of this matters. I write anyway. Then there are moments where something shifts and I know exactly why I’m doing it.

So I want to ask something directly.

If you’re currently a free subscriber and the writing has meant something to you or you want to support this work, I’d really appreciate you considering becoming a paid subscriber.

It’s five dollars a month, and it genuinely makes a difference. It helps give me the space to keep writing, to care for my dad in a meaningful way, and to keep sharing it.

If that’s not something you can do, I completely understand. Just being here and reading along matters to me.

I’ve also been reading and listening to a lot lately. Things that are helping me think, or just sit with all of this. I’ve been listening to The Emerald Podcast, especially the episodes on birds and death. I just started reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a book on bird lore, and going back through Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.

If there’s anything you’ve been reading or listening to that’s been meaningful to you, I’d love to hear about it.

Thanks for being here. Truly.

Roger

---

All are welcome here, but if you’re in a place to offer support, a paid subscription ($5/month or $50/year) is deeply appreciated. It’s not required, but it helps me keep showing up, to write, to share, to keep this thread of connection alive.

Out here in the countryside, caring for my folks is deeply meaningful, but often lonely. Writing about my experience and sharing it with you helps me stay grounded, inspired, and not quite so alone. Think of a paid subscription as a tip jar for the kind of storytelling that makes space for truth, tenderness, and the beautiful mess of being human.