The comment about alcohol gets a chuckle out of him, because isn't that the truth. Just because he doesn't drink much, it doesn't mean he isn't tempted.

"I've never really been a man of faith, myself. I respect others, but it's not something I was ever taught and by the time I got to where I could form my own opinion, other things had filled in that space."

Even as he says it, he can hear the rattle of chains and cheery, chiming laughter, but...that's something else entirely. He thinks. He tells himself.

He huffs out a breath. "But rituals are comforting, and there's something to be said for sharing grief, for seeing that you aren't the only one mourning."

The last bit gets a moment of silence, of contemplation, because he's not sure exactly how to answer that. Kate deserves at least some honesty, in his mind, but on the other hand he's barely honest with *himself*, never mind someone else.

But he's trying. He really is.

"Trying to keep busy so I don't have to think so much," he admits after a few seconds. "Things still feel strange without Garner, I'm trying to get back into routine but it feels...off. Maybe a little unreal."