Cabernet and Carboplatin

Years ago, a film was made that was a parody of the Beatles. The group was the Rutles, and they had a manager who had a prosthetic leg. His name was Leggy Mountbatten. And that is what I named my prosthesis. When I'm wearing it, it's my leg. It's part of me. But when I take it off, I usually have a little chat with Leggy, and we discuss our day-- how many steps I accomplished and how it got me through. And maybe a word of thanks. I plug in Leggy and lie him next to the bed to get him ready for tomorrow. Today, Jerry and I went to a craft show, and I walked thousands of steps. I was using my walker, which kind of acts as a shield to keep me safe. The show was fairly crowded, but if people saw me they cleared a path. When they didn't I patiently waited for room to walk. People, including me, were there to look at beautiful things. They weren't in a hurry and neither was I. I know I tend to get frustrated when I'm in Costco and someone is standing in the middle...

While it was happening I am sure I wouldn't have called it that, but now that my foot drop is a thing of the past, in its own way it was. Those couple of weeks let me really concentrate on my gait, rather than thinking about my balance. Using the walker, I thought about standing tall, keeping my shoulders back,and taking even steps with both feet. And my physical therapist encouraged me to do a lot of walking. It all paid off. This week at PT Meghan checked the angle of my foot, and it was back to normal. So it was back to walking with a cane and the results of my walking practice were noticable. I have my massage therapist to thank as well, because she worked on the fascia that surrounds the affected nerve. That work had my foot flex back to normal faster than I thought it would. Those couple of weeks with foot drop taught me some important lessons. It has resulted in me being more mindful in not just my walking, but in how I am living my life. Everything we do takes thought...