sunshine | Drew Dotson

Pause for Joy [a rejected essay]

I submitted an essay to a publication on Tuesday. Today, two days later, I received the rejection email. (So quick!) Although it didn't...

Mar 2, 20233 min read

A flight of imagination

I have a complicated relationship with airplanes. I was once headed to NYC for a work trip and had an awful asthma attack. I was gasping...

Nov 25, 20223 min read

No caveat(s) needed

Today, as I sat on a bench in the backyard, I was overcome with gratitude. I admired a happy Noodle, a beautiful sky, plants in bloom,...

Jun 1, 20222 min read

A nice ring to it

As the one-year anniversary of Ramón’s death approached, I went to a jeweler to get my engagement and wedding rings resized — an idea I’d...

Aug 10, 20214 min read

All is fair

Last week, after checking my temperature, the dental hygienist led me to my exam room. “How’s your husband doing?” she asked with the...

Dec 1, 20202 min read

An August of opportunity

Though I’ve been writing regularly, I haven’t posted much lately. This is mostly for good reason. For example, my friend Elaine came back...

Aug 5, 20203 min read

Day +57: Breathtaking sunset

Saturday into Sunday has become my toughest time of the week. It makes me reflect on "the night" when Ramón was feeling indescribably...

Jun 6, 20201 min read

One sunset at a time

It’s our third night in the hospital, and we just witnessed the best sunset so far – a Fight Like Mike sunset. Throughout Ramón’s cancer...

Apr 5, 20201 min read

Live oak

I recently borrowed a memoir from the local library. It caught my eye instantly because it was called Marrow, a word that entered our...

Oct 19, 20192 min read

A room with a view

We're not where we planned to wake up today, but this sunrise helped immensely. Ramón was admitted to the hospital yesterday after...

Sep 27, 20191 min read

Yellow door

Earlier this year, we decided to paint the laundry room door a bright and cheerful yellow. Like most household projects, it ended up...

Sep 10, 20191 min read

What a week can do

At this time last week, we had no idea what was coming. We were contemplating birthday dinner options when the doctor called and said to...

May 14, 20191 min read

Gallery

My name is Drew Dotson, and my life has been anything but perfect, yet it's still perfectly beautiful. After growing up with a genetic disease, cystic fibrosis, I was blessed to meet an amazing man who loved me without bounds. Then he died.

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