Wheel in, Walk Out. So long, 2012!

 *this is like one of those "look back at the year" montages, click the links for glimpses back at posts from this year.

This was an eventful year and I definitely got my money's worth out of it. After 2011, I didn't think it was possible to cram so much living into another year, but then I went and proved myself wrong.

I started this year in a wheelchair, and I wheeled and crutched and caned my way through, one step and one day at a time. There were road blocks along the way, but there were also some bridges and some really great scenery. I am thankful that I am walking out of 2012 better off than when I wheeled into it.

There were triumphs, whether they were small ones like being able to wear two shoes, or huge ones like learning to ride a bike or finally being able to walk unassisted after two long years of pain and tears and hard work. There were frustrations like filling prescriptions and there was anger, like when I found out a clinical trial damaged my kidneys. There were loved ones who died or walked out of my life and there were new babies and new endings. With every goodbye came a new hello, and I grew and learned from each one.

There was a whole lot of cooking, some of it good, some of it bad, and some of it that I can't eat. There were changes and silver linings, there was hope. There were milestones and adventures, infections and accomplishments, there were life lessons.

Some days I soared and others I needed to bust a bunch of eggs on a pier in the middle of the night. I raised money to benefit lung cancer research by learning yoga and I asked for help when I needed it. There was joy and sorrow and laughter and tears. There was life and love and loss joined with renewal,  risks, and gains.

Through it all, I was surrounded by people who cheered me on, picked me up, and lent me their light when mine went dim. I have been blessed in my life, but never as much as I have been by the people in it. If you are reading this, I am thankful for you. My loved ones are my greatest gift.

These are my highlights from the year. (click to enlarge)

2012, you were difficult and wonderful and enlightening and exhausting. Do me a favor, will ya? Tell 2013 to be gentle, please.

"Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man." - Benjamin Franklin

Oh and also, I have some really great news, but I'm not going to share it until next year...

One Year Post Foot Reconstruction

Today marks one whole year since I had my Frankenfoot sawed apart and put back together. You can revisit that here.

For my my foot reconstruction, I had bones, tendons, and ligaments cut, fused, and moved. After a month of rest followed ten months of physical torture (physical therapy). It was hard, and a lot of the time it sucked, and it hurt- it hurt a lot. Today I can walk on my own. It was worth every step to get here!

Someone posted this video on Facebook and I just had to share it with everyone. It really hits home, especially today.

Aside from thinking "damn, I should've made a video!" I tried, my PTs got on to me about HIPAA every time I tried. Most of the pics I took in the hospital were when nobody was watching. (I got caught a lot, too), I am floored by this man's determination and accomplishment. He is truly an inspiration and further proof that mind pulls so much more weight that matter. If you put your mind to it, you can achieve great things.

Never say never!

One Small Year, A Trillion Large Thanks

A year ago I went skiing for the first time...and it nearly killed me.

It's been a hell of a year and I couldn't have done it without the love and support of those around me.

Thank you to everyone who helped me survive this year.

Thank you for your calls, texts, emails, postcards and comments.

Thank you for driving me around town, for coming with me to appointments, for sitting with me in the ER when I was coughing up blood, and for bringing me food when I couldn't get out of bed.

Thank you for donating items to my garage sale and for helping me run it.

Thank you for holding my hand when I was scared or so I wouldn't fall, and thank you for helping me get up and down stairs.

Thank you for walking slowly so I could keep up and laughing with me when I fell flat on my face.

Thank you for encouraging me and supporting me when I was losing hope.

Thank you for buying me groceries, for making diet-friendly meals at gatherings, and for eating at diet-friendly restaurants.

Thank you for slipping me cash, writing me checks, and loaning me money.

Thank you for helping me move out of my old place and thank you for helping me move into the new place.

Thank you for buying my old bed and thank you for giving me my new one.

Thank you for letting me stay on your couches and air mattresses, and in your guestrooms and beds.

Thank you for admiring my scraper cane and pirate brace, for asking what was wrong when I looked like shit, and for telling me I looked good when I started feeling better.

Thank you for laying in bed watching movies with me, and for reading me bedtime stories.

Thank you for providing me with puzzles, books, and movies to occupy my time.

Thank you for offering job and housing leads, and for suggesting recipes and food I should try.

Thank you for your prayers and well wishes.

Thank you for making me laugh and for holding me when I cried.

Thank you for being the best medicine.

Thank you, thank you, thank you times a trillion!



"One small year
It's been an eternity
It's taken all of me to get here..."
-Shawn Colvin