New Year, New Ground Here it is — the new year is well underway. It arrived without hesitation and keeps moving, carrying everything with it. Yes, I made it back home — very far west — back to James, and back to all of you, dear friends and loyal companions. And at the same time, I had to leave behind the loves on the other side of this fragile, beloved planet. The long flights, which once felt like pure agony, have somehow turned into a kind of in-between, meditative free space for me. There’s a song by Reinhard Mey that plays quietly in my head during those hours above the ocean: Above the clouds Freedom must surely be boundless. All fears, all worries, So they say, Remain hidden behind. And then what seems so big and important to us Suddenly becomes trivial and small. I hum it to myself up there, and it fills me with a sense of perspective that feels larger than current events. When I arrived home on Christmas Eve, I found James and Coby calm, collected — almost so peace...