I am so, so sorry…

(Letter 1)

Charity,

Goddess…I am so sorry. I’ve been thinking of you non-stop for the last couple of weeks, and today, at work, I went up and got the mail and found a letter from you dated July 24th. Your Sister told me you were not allowed phone access, again, and I kept thinking I needed to write you. I’m so glad you reached out and prodded me.

You know, you’ve mentioned (and I do apologize for not responding to your previous words…I promise I will work on that) the dynamics you are under in Prison. Maybe I can help keep you reminded of what life is like on the outside, through my letters to you, so you don’t lose sight of what life is supposed to be like, in some regards. Maybe, just maybe, I can do that for you even if just a little bit.

I will look into the magazines for you today. I’ll also see about putting in that order for the catalog you requested, of course.

I cannot even believe you won’t be out until you are 50! That makes me, what, 56-57? Good Grief, woman! LOL We can be old ladies together on the outside. LOL LOL LOL But, at the same time, I’m 48 now, and 9 more years isn’t that far away, which is also kind of scary, when I think about it. Ugh.

Yes, you are correct, I have been so stressed and busy. I was just thinking, right before I went and found your mail, that I feel like, after almost a year, things are starting to slow down a tiny bit – and I hope that’s true. I need it to be true.

I’ve been diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis. It’s basically Rheumatoid (and I already have Osteo in my left knee and right hip), but is only affecting one side at a time, as opposed to bi-lateral sides like regular Rheumatoid does. This is affecting my right index finger and right wrist, which makes things difficult in regards to picking things up, putting on socks, simple stuff you take for granted. …it sounds like both you and I are getting used to new ways of life, eh? It’s no fun, and I’m on drugs 2x a day plus another one that is an anti-breast cancer drug (in a small dose) 1x a week, to see if this fixes it. It’s not, so far. This crept up before I went to The Gambia last November, and finally got diagnosed around March.

(next letter to follow)