Last week, my friend Remy Nakamura gave me a bottle of ink he picked up in Japan. It’s coffee flavored…I mean SCENTED. Don’t drink it. That would be super gross. And messy.
It made me think of the little ways we show our care for each other.
I’ve been pouring lots of cups of coffee since Armin and I launched the Kickstarter last week (we are 20% of the way there!).
Writing Mythwakers: The Manananggal has been a challenge. The Manananggal is not your regular middle grade hero. She drinks blood and can, you know, separate the top half of her body from the bottom.
Lots of people are scared of her.
Armin and I, as we have been working, have been trying to explore her character more. Why does she resonate with the Filipino peoples? What makes her story compelling?
Turns out, there’s a lot about this world that we don’t understand.
Sometimes, life is confusing. Sometimes, people are mean. Sometimes the winter is dark and we can’t find the light. Sometimes, people drink our blood in the middle of the night and the only way we can stop them is by–
I’ll save that bit for later.
I don’t tend to watch a lot of horror movies myself. I think it’s because the coffee is too hot. I like mine cooled down, with extra cream.
I wish the world was more gentle.
My husband Bob noted today that we got through a lot of cream. I didn’t remind him that we go through a lot of coffee too. He knows that very well.
We lean into the planning and the process, the madness and the plan. We ardently try to fix things that are going wrong. We are going going going and I sometimes forget to take a moment and enjoy the first sip.
So, here’s to March. Here’s to a cup of coffee, just the way you like it.
Here’s to a moment in the early morning or late afternoon. Just for you. An extra pour.
Pass me the cream.
