Another Favorite Passage

I'd like to share another passage from The Terrapin's Trail that I like:

Watching Tak and Victoria coordinating their movements in the crammed kitchen reminded Kai of the tango he used to work up with Grace at her place. Memories seeped through once again. He had blocked them out for so long that the constant waves of colors and smells surprised and disoriented him. There was something unreliable about this day, but he was too impotent to object. The heat may have something to do with it.

If there were anything he had learned in the past forty lonely years, it would be the ability to count one's blessings. There had been a time when even getting out of bed would have been a struggle, or how a cup of coffee would be a gift. For a long while Kai had not wanted to live, but somehow he did, which had led him to this moment in this little house.