"Life has meaning only in the struggle.
Triumph or defeat is in the hands of the gods.
So let us celebrate the struggle.” - Swahili warrior song
I’m not a Swahili warrior. And I also am not polytheistic. But this is a good quote, at least for me.
The last couple days have been big for me in my training. And also sad in my home. I made strides with training but we had to make a tough decision with Goldie, the foster dog we had for about 10 days.
Yesterday, therapy went well and as planned, Vari came down from orthotics and saw me walk for a couple seconds before taking my KAFOs to chop them down. So I no longer have KAFOs, but AFOs. Some spinal cord injuries never get to this point so I’m ecstatic! The AFOs are vastly easier to put on - I just cross my leg and put them on the same way I put on shoes. It’s great. Walking with them is actually a fair amount harder since a) my knees bend, lessening stability and requiring more actual muscle work and b) I can’t just rest on them when I stand. These are good things, because it will force me to work harder and use more muscles all around.
Another sweet benefit of the AFOs is sitting down. Instead of my legs staying straight, they bend at the knee and I can sit down much more normally, or rather, less awkwardly. That means I can pretty much wear them all day and walk when needed.
Today we had to take Goldie back to PAWS. The impending loss of our canine friend created sadness and a fair amount of tension between me and Rebecca. Neither of us wanted to part ways with her, but we decided we weren’t really ready for it and also that a dog like Goldie would be better-suited in a house with a yard. The result was that we were upset we didn’t have a house with a yard.
My parents went with us and my mom suggested that I try not using my wheelchair and try out my AFOs in full force. So I left my wheelchair at home, walked down the halls and out to the car, transferred to the car from the walker, etc. It was a first and very difficult but nice to not feel tethered to the chair on wheels.
After dropping off Goldie we went to grab a bite close to wear Rebecca needed to babysit for my good friends Ron and Iliana. Their kids are Miela and Henry - both are pretty awesome and really smart. Anyway I needed to go to the bathroom (aka cath) and after getting out of the car and into the restaurant - an effort in itself - found out that the bathroom was actually in the adjoining hotel. Oh yeah, and on the 2nd floor down a hall. So instead of sitting down to eat, I got my second workout of the day just going to the bathroom. At least it went well without the wheelchair.
I got back in time to order and for Rebecca to leave. Not long after leaving, though, she came back with Miela and Henry to say hi. Miela was rocking what looked like some crazy, glittery Converse, knee-high boots. Pretty awesome haha… Henry showed off his knowledge of human anatomy by pointing to ears, eyes, nose, hair, etc. He’s barely 2, so it was impressive. The restaurant I think felt bad about my bathroom journey so they gave us some warmed up chocolate chip cookies which made it all worth it. Henry seemed to think so, at least.
Here’s a pic of me getting back in the car to head home.
Good times. By the time I got home I was so tired I actually missed my wheelchair, something I thought would never happen.
My parents and I just watched the sunset on the roof here with a couple glasses of Makers Mark. As much as it may seem that I am enduring something extremely difficult, my life is still ridiculously blessed.
My great aunt Dot turned 87 today. Happy birthday, aunt Dot! She has been an extremely positive person for as long as I can remember. I don’t remember her ever doing anything but smiling and offering to cook me something delicious like fried catfish, hushpuppies, or something of the like. Apparently she has a group of friends she plays cards with and she’s the “young” one. At 87! So awesome.
G’night!
Chip
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