One of the important parts of recovery is to celebrate every milestone. So even though it was a week after the event, today we celebrated my fabulous blood tests by going to Philly to run the Rocky Steps! I made it- i ran (well, jogged, but i didn't walk!) all 96 steps, not once but *twice*! whew!
It was a beautiful day and we got some pictures and even some video (the video is going to take a little while to retrieve from the cameras onto the computer and compile).
I feel I'm slowing reclaiming all my old superpowers of my youth. I look forward to going back to the steps someday later this year and running them two at a time. Maybe I'll even think of something else I want to do to mark the next milestone in health.
My milestones were much smaller after I had the stroke- I couldn't have dreamed of running stairs. in fact, at one point I was trapped in the house I was staying in because I couldn't get up and down the one stair that led to the outside world. I had people take pictures of me then, because I knew if I didn't, no one who hadn't witnessed it themselves would believe I had ever been so sick. I was so sure I would get well and look and feel good again that people would not believe I was ever so ill.
So back then, I would celebrate my victories like being able to wear shoes again, or seeing improvements in blood tests, or being able to get up and down the one stair and go outside by going swimming in the pool out back, or going to the beach with a friend, or going to the thrift shop (Florida's thrift shops are just amazing), or going to a concert.
I've got a great book I've been enjoying put together by a reporter and a photographer who spent a year interviewing people running the Rocky steps to celebrate various occasions, like recovering from cancer, or getting married:
