" Life is suffering," I repeat. My voice seems to have shrunk. I stare at her and ask, "Always?" I sound like a child.
Merriem shakes her head. She reaches over and takes my hand. "Not always."
I swallow. I can barely whisper, "When is it not?"
Merriem gives a small sigh. "Oh, darling. Just when it's not. When it's a good day in between the hard ones." She squeezes my fingertips. "When the sun shines and the bees make honey. When you're with people who love you. When you find treasures- like morels and fiddleheads and huckleberries. "

― Hannah Tunnicliffe , Season of Salt and Honey