learning to walk.

I finally got my air cast off on Monday! I had a feeling I would, and I was planning on going to the gym afterward. At my appointment, the surgeon told me that I was NOT to get on the treadmill and run -- or even walk -- because I could snap the metatarsal, as it is still healing and building bone. Daily activities are fine, but prolonged, excessive walking is not. He said I'll be running by fall, and like a little child, I could feel my eyes tearing up and exclaimed, "But you said I'd be running by July!" He said that in 4 weeks, after my next appointment, we could re-evaluate after looking at new X-rays. So needless to say, I've been continuing swimming, and added biking and the elliptical, as well as upper body weight lifting to my routine.

But there's the little problem of walking. I cannot flex my toes so much; this is normal due to the realigning of the tendons and ligaments. Soft tissue heals much slower than bones, and the nerves are rebuilding themselves. So walking is interesting. I cannot flex my foot and push off the ball of my foot with my left foot. So I end up walking/somewhat limping sort of slowly and overcompensating on my right side. Sometimes it's more pronounced than others, and I get self-conscious about it, because it's not apparent to everyone that I had foot surgery; I just look like I'm walking weird. So I am, essentially, learning to walk all over again. Talk about a metaphor, huh?

In the locker room today, there was a little girl changing next to her mom, and the little girl's locker was next to mine. I had just finished my workout, and the girl started talking to me. She was probably 5 or 6 years old, maybe 7, and she had Down syndrome. She reached into my locker and started playing with the lock, while her mother admonished her and I reassured the mom it was okay for her to touch it. The little girl started telling me about how she's changing back into her clothes because they're going out to dinner, and how much she loves pizza and cookies. I agreed that pizza and cookies sounded pretty good, and I love pizza. I bent down to take my shoes off, and the little girl leaned over so our faces were level and she said to me, smiling, "It's a beautiful day today." The sweetness with which she said it brought tears to my eyes and I said, "Yes, it is." As I was leaving, she called after me, "Have a wonderful summer!" That simple exchange made my day.