You know the old adage, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade or margaritas. I like the idea behind this, but what if you don’t have sugar or tequila? Then what do you do?

It’s not a perfect metaphor but I’ve been thinking about it lately as I watch the beautiful lemons in the decorative bowl on my kitchen counter slowly shrivel up. Honestly, each day I’d look at them and feel like a small failure for not using the beautiful lemons. They would have been great just sliced and added to my water or they could have lent a nice brightness to a vegetable dish. But I just haven’t had the energy for the extra step.

So now I have shriveled lemons and that’s alright. Sometimes it’s too much to make something out of what we have. Can’t it be enough to just have lemons, sitting in a bowl.

I say yes.

Today I am sitting with my lemons, appreciating their beauty before I compost them and get take out. I’m also thinking about summer and how stinking hard it is. I want to make the most of it and thrive despite the circumstances, but it’s alright that it’s hard.

Last year we made the most of it as we bravely went back and forth to Boston and fought Rett syndrome head on. This year, we are sitting with it in it’s bitterness and beauty.

And that is enough. For now.