What I know for sure

.... you know with certainty the following 3 things:
(1) if you are living and breathing, you will pay taxes;
(2) someday you will die and meet your maker; and
(3) there are more slimeballs in this world than rats in a NYC tenement.

That's a quote from a fellow freelancer written in response to another list member's story about not getting paid for work done.

But it's a pretty accurate way to see things, I think.

Wish it weren't so -- that #3.

There are a lot of good people, too, who will help you, give you good advice, stand by you when you're hurting, and give you a shoulder to cry on.

I'm grateful for those. It's not easy for me to let them in when I'm hurting, but I've tried, and it's their collective supportive energies that have sustained me over these past months. I try to surround myself with good people who are the kind of friend to me that I try to be to them.

That's what it's about: giving back and also being able to receive kindness and generosity. Loving your family and friends. The rest of it has some importance, but it's not what will sustain you in hard times.

Y'know what I mean?