The emails start in April, and your body knows it before your mind catches up. Gifts for Mom. Get her something she really wants. Within days your inbox has decided that Mother's Day is coming and that you should feel a certain way about it. For many people, the second Sunday in May is something to endure.

You want connection. You also find it exhausting. Both of these are true, and they pull against each other in ways that are hard to explain even to yourself.