I realize what I’m feeling is profound disappointment. The notion that reentry is an ongoing and difficult process is usually referenced in the context of veterans of war or the formerly incarcerated, not to survivors of illness. Over the last year, I’d imagined Ned settled back into the kingdom of the well, the worries in his letter long behind him, and that he’d now be in a position to guide me. But he, too, is still finding his way, still struggling to carry the collateral damage of illness, and suddenly I realize: We may always be.
