June 1st 2019,
I climbed twenty-two stairs
Walked, stumbled,
through a kitchen in-between
The first day, I marvel at the roof,
of all things.
Disorientation lasted 6 months.
By the end of the year,
I was twerking at a Shania Twain concert in Las Vegas,
In leopard-print wedges.
And yet,
Two days after Christmas
I could not breathe,
Bones melted in my skin.
It would be 3 days into 2020
Before the blood loss
Pneumonia,
And blood clot
Was resolved.
It was the longest stint,
Outside my room
In two+ years.
Covid19 set in.
I set myself to work,
Studying,
Motivational interviewing,
Attachment theory,
Latin,
Finnish,
Arabic,
Gaelic,
Spanish,
Singing practice,
LSAT,
And,
my states administrative rules
Passed the LSAT
And prepared
For law school.
In all that time,
I likely left one room for 300 hours
Out of approximately 17,161 hours.
I learned to appreciate that life,
Even without freedom of movement.
I was not imprisoned.
Today I sit in my own apartment,
Can take my walker or wheelchair
Outside as I please,
I do not regret living in a room,
Using a camode,
Or lacking running water,
Because it forced me to slow down,
Think creatively,
And appreciate freedom of movement
While teaching me freedom of mind.
SickyBeat 