Nearly normal

The weather has turned nippy and damp this morning, but yesterday was probably the last warm afternoon of the season, with clear blue skies and just a flutter of wind--a perfect day for an afternoon walk. I've made it all the way up the big horrible hill twice this week, so I thought it might be time to walk the loop, a feat I haven't attempted since my surgery in June. Could I manage six miles of hilly terrain? That's what we set out to see.

The last time I walked the loop was the week before my daughter's wedding, when she and two of her bridesmaids joined me and Hopeful on the trek. This time my husband walked with me, and I was glad for the company because several times I might have turned around if he hadn't been there to encourage me. The uphills are still difficult, but once past those parts I did fine--and once you get past a certain point, there's nothing to do but just keep walking. So that's what we did. All the way around. Woo-hoo!

I feel almost sort of nearly normal today, but my next chemotherapy treatment is scheduled for Friday, so I'll get a few more chances to walk before entering into awfulness and then it may be weeks before I'm strong enough to get up that hill again. Still, it's good to know that the hill can be conquered. It stands there like a beacon, a challenge, a promise that one day life will be normal again.

For now, thought, I'll accept almost sort of nearly normal.