Better You Than Me

"I know I should be sad, but I don't feel much of anything these days," Ann said.

"I have no appetite, nothing interests me, and nothing bothers me. I don't even feel guilty for not feeling sad about Relapse Boy's death."

"A lot of people say the world seems bland and gray after long coke runs," I said. "It's all tied to brain chemistry. Your brain functioning will gradually return to normal."

"I cannot remember the last time I felt so alive," James said. "I find I have an enormous appetite. I absolutely lust after a woman who lives in my apartment building, and I have read more books in the past week than I had read in the prior year."

"You're lucky," I said to James. "Despite all the crack you smoked, your brain has bounced back quickly."

"I am truly sorry your world is so grey," James said to Ann. "Truth be told, I am very grateful I am not you. Is it wrong to be so thankful one has escaped the fate another person faces?"

I said, "I don't think so. In fact, when I catch myself slipping into self-pity, I make a list of five or six people I wouldn't change places with."

Today I will make a list of people I'm grateful I'm not.