A New Day
Thursday

Well, this seems like an odd date to start over but the urge to start writing again has crept up on me. I had never intended to stop where I did. I guess it was a matter of life issues and coping with the new aspect of disability.

As of two years ago I became scooter/wheelchair dependent. I can take a few steps but walking is no longer an option. It has taken awhile to come to terms with this new way of being. I am gratified that my entire life has not been like this; many are born into a life of disability. But after a lifetime of 'normal mobility' this has proved challenging.

When I say scooter/wheelchair dependent, that means years ago it would have been a wheelchair. But technology has give us a bevy of alternatives. Since I am not paralyzed, I have the option of a scooter. But make no mistake, I am as attached to that as anyone in a wheelchair is to their mobility choice. Scooter's give non-paralyzed people ways of moving that is not possible from a wheelchair. For now, I am grateful for these small favors.

There are the obvious things that one immediately thinks of when faced with loss of mobility, like just walking around. Then there are the things I never thought of, like counter height, inability to access other people's homes, and accessibility generally speaking. This has been nothing less than an education in which I will have to earn at least a 'life Bachelor's Degree.' Frequently I am presented with a new obstacle and have to brainstorm and really problem solve about how to circumvent this obstacle. Actually, I am amazed at the results that come to mind. Some are big and some are small, but each gives me back a piece of freedom that has absconded.

So this is a good day, where the pain is manageable, as is my mobility. I feel hopeful and able to accomplish some tasks. However, on other days it feels like the end of the world. I have not totally left pity-party-city, but I am working on it.