"Afterward, I listened to her voice mail from the previous week. It was almost unintelligible through her sobs. She was having a bottom-of-the-well moment, utterly distraught by the Big Picture of her life, not one thing in particular but the sort of malaise that strikes from every direction and gobbles you whole. She simply needed me to keep her company on the phone while she freaked out. To tell her everything would be O.K." - × × ×