To the Bone, Zach

My prayers for this final, free year of my 30s:

• That I write my book this year. It has to happen.
• That my family stays healthy. My mom's fine, but she was just diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat, and will do ablation soon to fix it, and will soon be on a blood thinner. She is 69. When do you notice that your parents are getting old?
• That there's movement in my middle brother's relationship with his girlfriend. That my brother is able to find a stable income and grow his music presence.
• That my younger brother is able to land on his feet after Donald Trump single-handedly upended his place of work (it's the Kennedy Center). That, if they want children, they are able to have them easily and quickly.
• That my parents continue to live well in their retirement and have many more years together.
• That I quit my job and find work that feels fulfilling. (I feel it getting closer. A bunch of potential jobs came up out of nowhere recently. Or were they out of nowhere? I just did three days of intense prayer in Poland.)
• That I organize an open mic in Tel Aviv.
• That I find someone who I want to be with, who wants to be with me, and who it feels good and comfortable and fulfilling with.
• That I feel empowered to talk to more strangers.
• That I hear more albums like To the Bone, because I feel like I'm walking through a carnival ride.
• That I have the challenging conversations with my family.
• That I build more empathy for others.
• That I follow through on commitments.
• That I teach people the things I know so that I don't withhold my light from the world.
• That I read more.
• That I renew my love for studying.
• That I further improve my relationship with my phone, because right now it's somewhat toxic.
• That I lean into the idea that it really, really doesn't matter what other people think.
• That I can write album reviews that have nothing to do with the music but have everything to do with the music.
• That I can act like a Trent Reznor-esque person, just like Steven Wilson and Sophia Hunger do.
• That I give new albums a chance and don't just listen to the old favorites.
• That I see a band that I really like live.
• That I get a poem published in a journal or magazine.
• That I can look back at this list in one year and feel like I made progress on every one of these items.