“ I would give you some violets, but they wither’d all when my father
died.” [Ophelia, Act IV, Scene 5, Hamlet]

The fragile flower known
Sign of hope, wisdom, spirit
Drained of life and color
Violet hue bled away
Grief overtakes all
Overthrows gentle mind

Bob Wertzler is retired from almost twenty years in the mental health field in California and Arizona. There are times the title, “Recovering Therapist”, seems to fit. In 2006 he retired to move to Western North Carolina to help and become primary care giver for his father who had developed Dementia. Before all that, there was work at various times as a soldier (US Army 1967-70), community organizer, cab driver, welfare case worker, wooden toy maker, carpenter, warehouse worker, and other things. He relates to a line in a Grateful Dead song, “What a long, strange trip its been.”