Companionship in the Lows
Water Play by Carol Carmichael "We're all in the same boat." It's a casual phrase, usually ironic, and has little merit to it beyond a kind of vague, half-hearted pity. It's a dismissal of complaints or a shrug of agreement. It's a way of saying, "yeah, pal, sorry you feel that way, but everyone else's lives suck too." Sometimes it's a touch softer and sweeter, but most of the time, claiming to be in someone else's boat is a way of assuring them that they're not the only one in a situation, and sometimes, that they can't or shouldn't complain because other people are sharing the experience. If I'm being honest, I don't feel like there's someone else in my boat. I feel like I am the only person in the world in my boat, floating alone on a very dark ocean with meager food supplies. I'm a solo sailor, sprucing herself up enough to wave to a passerby. My boat is patched and bruised, and it floats, but whatever pin...
