I Too Shall Pass

Photo by the author, Forest Lawn Cemetery, Glendale, CA (2020)

Content note: this story includes discussion of addiction and suicidal ideation.

I am agoraphobic, which is to say that since childhood it has sometimes felt difficult or impossible for me to leave my home or even my bedroom. While “agora” means marketplace and “phobia” means “fear,” the reality of modern life is that I can easily order anything I need from online sites, and rarely need to visit an actual marketplace — or an actual…