I’d often said I got to work and when I leave; that’s when my real life begins. But, that’s a lie. My private and personal life are firmly intertwined and that’s a blessing.

My aching back reminded me it was time to stand up and go for a walk around the office. So I sent my story notes to the furthest printer and set off to get them. I was going to update a triple stabbing, a shooting and a deadly limo accident. The tone set by assignments, my physical pain and my personal troubles left me In desperate need of something to lighten my mood. I thought a fist full of Red Hots for breakfast was a good start.
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Then, as I rounded the corner by the assignment desk I saw my co-worker, Lori Stokes, on the way out. She stopped me with a somber look on her face.
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"I read your blog," she said referring to my post, "Rising from the Depths of Despair."

“It was beautiful. You are an inspiration to all of us. I want you to know how much you are loved. You are not alone.”

Lori’s word brought up a flood of emotion and left me on the verge of tears. She didn’t know it but I wasn’t feeling great before that moment at all. It was one of my bad days racked with thoughts about my choices and circumstances that left me unmarried, childless, sickly and often concerned with money to stay on top of my medical bills.

As she headed home, I realized that I sometimes I don’t like my stories or how I am required to cover them but I love the people I work with on them. We are stand united in grief, in laughter, in celebrations of marriage and births and in the loss of fathers, mothers and siblings. We are always there for each other and that’s not just a co-worker relationship that’s friendship.