Summary

The “Epilogue” is titled “Thaw.” May begins this section of the book with a description of a mature buzzard that she sees every morning on the way to work, a regular kind of inspiration or totem for the day. She then says that she wishes she could end her book on a note of confidence and stability, but then says that instead, she will have to acknowledge the uncertainty and anxiety with which she lives virtually every day. She references philosophies and perspectives that reference, and urge contemplation of, the value of paying attention to the present moment, rather than to the past or the future. She says that she struggles to remember that way of thinking and feeling and being, but commits to being willing and open to being reminded of it. She then describes an unexpected encounter with a flock of birds...