[Week 17] On Motion and Parades

October 11, 2025

[Week 17] On Motion and Parades

My recovery was not immediate.
There was no moment of miraculously standing from my wheelchair, walking away, and never looking back.

It was months of painstaking effort rewarded by slow and deliberate progress.

It started in the driveway. Baby steps taken with a walker, shaking legs supported by braces. Mom followed close, wheelchair in hand, just in case.

Hobbiton (with walker) - 2014

Then came the cul-de-sac next door.

I logged lap after lap after lap, fueled by encouragement from neighbors. At one point, I even calculated how many laps it would take to walk the equivalent of getting to Mordor from the Shire.

(A lot)

Bethesda Hosptial - 2014

Eventually I leveled up to the street and then finally the park.
It was a time of little direction, uncertain about where I was going and how I would get there.
I was recovering, that much was clear. But no one could say how much function I would regain, or for how long.

How do you rest on borrowed time?
How do you make plans or set goals when everything feels fragile?
How could I ever feel settled while still?

My feet stayed in motion. I walked at all hours of the day.
Newton came with me. Together we wandered until I’d seen four flagpoles, or six dogs, or ten stoplights.
I walked when I was angry, or happy, or sad.
I walked to find meaning.
I walked to gain strength.
I walked when I had nothing better to do.

And then, I started running.

I traded my cul-de-sac Lord of the Rings crossover for more tangible, Middle-earth-themed goals.
It took Frodo and Sam six months to get from Bag End to Mount Doom.
I left for New Zealand after about five months of newfound movement.

In the kitchens of Hobbiton, I rarely sat.
Bread baskets, dishes, unpacking orders, prepping produce, more dishes.

I biked to work and back. I ran on my days off.
There were early-morning gym visits and post-work adventures with friends.

The Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

Alpine crossing - January 2023

Street marches with band.

National NZ Brass Band Compition - June 2023

The Halfling Marathon.

Hobbiton (without walker) - March 2023

The Rotorua Half.

Rotorua after running really far - May 2023

The rhythm of worn-down shoes against the boardwalks of Mt. Maunganui, the sidewalks of Auckland, the botanical gardens of Dunedin, the shores of Lake Taupo.

And when I finally returned home, I kept going — band, more running, skiing, swimming.