Keeping it real

When I started the blog, I vowed to make each one help stroke survivors in some way while keeping it light or humorous.  There are some realities in my life that do not allow me to always be positive.  This blog is about “keeping it real.”

This week Bob closed a really big deal. We discussed how to celebrate. Our first thought was to take a trip since Bob has worked nonstop for over 18 months to close this deal which included week nights, weekends, etc. We sat at the table this morning and discussed our options, listing activities like swim in an ocean, walking art tour on canyon road in Santa Fe or Marfa, take a long bicycle ride, hike in Big Bend, and sight-see in San Francisco.  The reality is I cannot easily do any of these things anymore.  Using the Santa Fe art tour as an example, we love the food, climate, art, etc. However, once there we would have to take my wheelchair or rent one since it is very much a walking city. This type of trip puts Bob on duty as a nonstop caregiver. So, it is not much fun for Bob to have to push me up the hilly and bumpy Canyon road all afternoon. 

We asked ourselves, what we did before the stroke.  When we traveled a trip generally centered around personal best activities such as kayaking, running, bicycling, hiking, etc.  Since I can’t do these things anymore, our trips now revolve around other stuff.  Back to our mantra:  “revel in the things you can do.”  .  By the way, I did get a new pair of blue chalcedony earrings as a result of the deal closing.  I am in the market for a new car (more on that subject later.) Now I might be able to get a better car. For now, I cannot swim in an ocean but I can swim 100 lengths in our pool at home.  I cannot walk the San Francisco hills but I can walk 1 mile in my neighborhood.  I cannot ride a bicycle outdoors but I can ride 6 miles on my recumbent bike at home.  I realized there are a lot of things I can do, I can jump on a plane and go anywhere in the world as long as someone is there on the other side to catch me “revel, revel, revel”.