“The tragedy of it is that nobody sees the look of desperation on my face. Thousands and thousands of us, and we're passing one another without a look of recognition.”
– Henry Miller, American novelist and painter

“Stick around and we’ll talk,” I said, breaking open a square straw bale. It was a Saturday morning. I had just finished cleaning the hog barn and was bedding down the squealers. I enjoyed watching the wiener pigs run through the fresh straw like a bunch of playful children. It always made me laugh. My buddy, Joe (not his real name) had shown up unexpectedly. I was happy to see him and motioned for him to come inside. He told me that he had come to say goodbye.

“Goodbye?” I responded. “Aren’t you a little old to b...

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