Wednesday, December 11, 2024   

     Asleep in the dark, I hear my cellphone ring. Who died. Did I die? No, I am still alive. Who would text me in the dark? I drift back to sleep, there is nothing I can do to help. In the light I see the messages between my siblings about a washing machine. I forgot to turn off my cell phone. Death is on my mind. I mean my death is on my mind.  There is no indication that I will die soon.

     No more construction trucks crowding the neighborhood. Twenty three months of work.  The family is back in their now luxurious home.  Now it is the workers rebuilding the gardens. I watch the action from across the street.

     Yesterday I am tired. This fatigue comes and goes.  Old age? Cancer treatment? I will never know. Time for naps and listening to classical music .

     I am reading HOLD YOUR BREATH, CHINA, BY Qiu Xiaolong. I have read many of his books about life in Shanghai. Another book for the pile of international detective stories for Christmas giving.