Christmas was going to be different this year. With Erin back at her mom's house in West Virginia, it would be the first time in her thirteen years that she wouldn't be with me. I know she is well, and that she is with people who love her, but it didn't make it that much easier for me to deal with.
One of the biggest changes was that I would have to get the stuff going back to her into the mail well before Christmas Eve (my usual shopping day). That was way easier to deal with than is the reason that change was necessary. However, I'm a strong man, and other people have had to endure far greater adversity in their lives. Even knowing this, it's difficult at times to not just feel sorry for myself.