Marking Days

Unless the radiation machine breaks down (which has been known to happen), Killian finishes treatment on Jan. 27. That's also seven days into our new president, the first day after the Chinese New Year. My year, and Phil's year, and Barack Obama's according to the Chinese - the year of the ox. With Killian feeling so much better, freshness in the air, and the "miracle on the Hudson" that occurred yesterday, I feel a bit heady. 155 people in a plane dropped out of the sky when the plane's engines suddenly stopped AND THEY'RE STILL ALIVE. Heroes arose. It wasn't all luck. For a second there, I wanted to believe the pilot was just competent -- that any pilot would know how to do this, and I could be safe boarding any plane. Even if that's so (and it's a stretch of an argument to make because what that pilot did was amazing), there are the ferry drivers. Those guys weren't trained for that. Honor the heroes. Honor the everyday heroes too. Whether someone is risking life or limb, or risking reputation or red cent. The Mansfields know so much about the reputation-or-red-cent heroes. They keep fishing us out, propping us up, making sure we go on.