Thanks for letting me share it. I made it for myself, after a great day caught me by surprise, so I could read about it on the days that were difficult.

I woke this morning, and something was different.

Nothing announced it. No great revelation, no sudden understanding. Just the quiet of a morning that asked nothing of me.

I turned in my bed. I sat up. I stood.

And somewhere between standing and taking that first step, I realized I hadn’t thought about any of it.

There was no negotiation. No wondering what the day would allow. No deciding what was worth doing and what would have to wait.

I simply walked.

I walked into the kitchen, reached for my coffee, bent to pick something off the floor, and stood again.

Such ordinary things. Such magnificent, ordinary things.

I thought about going outside, and then I went.

Not because I had carefully considered it. Not because I had saved enough of myself to make the journey.

I wanted to go, and that was reason enough.

The world hadn’t changed. The sun was the same sun. The birds sang the same songs. The people went about their business, unaware that something extraordinary had happened to one man that morning.

I had been given a day.

A whole day that belonged to me.

Not divided into what I could and couldn’t do. Not measured by how much I had left. Not borrowed against tomorrow.

Mine.

And I found myself smiling at things that deserved no particular smile.

A walk across the yard. A little work around the house. Standing in the sunshine with nowhere I needed to sit.

I could make plans without first asking permission from something I could neither see nor control.

And perhaps that was the greatest gift of all.

For once, I wasn’t thinking about myself. I was thinking about the world, and all the little things in it that I might like to do.

I don’t know what tomorrow holds. I have learned not to make promises on tomorrow’s behalf.

But today?

Today, I walk without thinking. I stand without effort. I move because I wish to move. I live because there is living to be done.

I have no crown. I own no kingdom. There are no servants at my door, no riches waiting in my name.

But I have something that no amount of gold could purchase.

For this one beautiful, ordinary day, my life belongs to me.

And today, I walk like a king.

You were overwhelmingly kind in comments on one of my posts. So it made me happy to find this post.

I wrote something years ago when I was recovering from illness. Very similar struggles as you faced.

It’s called Today I Walk Like a King and I’d be happy to share it if you want to read it.

Works for me!

You’re going to love the experience.

Fair warning; they can get very busy and we saw it happen.

Now that was awesome and something I never expected. I didn’t even consider the horse. 🤣

And they think they can hide, even with that volume of white hair. 😂

The sign language thing is really cool!

Ours was a feral. He can be a bit jumpy. So we developed a safe phrase with him. And if anything happens that spooks him or makes him believe that that he’s in trouble when he’s not, we can say the safe phrase and immediately he feels okay.

Thanks about the poem. Poems capture the feelings I had when I took the picture. And that way if I look at it some years down the road, I can remember those feelings again.

Your Emma is just as beautiful.

He does have heterochromia, but he’s not deaf, except when he doesn’t want to do something. Then he’s completely deaf and it has nothing to do with his eyes.

And just like yours, ours loves little hiding nooks like your picture shows.

I guess this is one way of spearfishing

In a perfect world, such a life
Outdoor freedom and chasing mice.

However, in the area, which I live
Only one guarantee I could give.

Turkey vultures, Hawks, and more
They spend their lives as prey and not much more.

So for now, they’ll take their window scene, and afternoon trips to the backyard catio (16’x8’) in between.

Felix just got himself another like on YT.

Thanks!