It’s putting the pen to the paper that is most difficult. Like deciding to parallel park while a big car idles impatiently behind you. It’s that moment that you apply the brakes to the momentum of the day and to the world that swirls around you. You signal your intent and everything stops, waiting for you to get it right.

Breathing doesn’t help. It might actually be better to have less oxygen in your brain. Better to inhabit a fuzzy mental state so you aren’t fully aware of the dangerous possibilities.