Life and Love at my Level

 Today I am officially 42 years and 9 days old!! I have to smile a bit at this statement, thinking of how little kids are very precise about their age. It is always 6 and a half or 8 and three quarters or even 10 and 350 days. Kids celebrate every day and year added to their age, but as we mature, that precise tallying of age slowly dissolves into generalizations. The years are marked with 20s, 30s, 40s, over the hill and then on the downhill side or too old to care. As we grow older, birthdays are still remembered, but at times, the celebration of it gets lost or forgotten in the busyness of work and family. However, ever since I was young, my family always made birthdays a priority for celebration. This priority mainly came from my Dad because he LOVED birthdays; it didn't matter which family member was celebrating-- my Dad made sure that the day was special and celebrated. Therefore, I grew up with some form of birthday party every year.  When I was young, every year was tr...

I have absolutely no plan for this entry, but my sister challenged me to write about "level". She said, "You have written about life and love, so now it's time to write about level." When I usually begin forming an entry, I have a general outline to guide my writing, but I will admit that I am not really getting a direction for this entry.  However, I always enjoy a challenge, and perhaps I will be surprised to see where the writing takes me.  Physically speaking, I have always been on a different level from others. When I was younger, my wheelchair was at the right level for my peers. But as my peers began growing, I was stuck at butt and crotch level. My gaze had to constantly shift up in order to make eye contact with my peers. However, as I grew, my wheelchair also transitioned to adapt to my body. Due to severe scoliosis and compromised respiratory function, my wheelchair took on a reclining position to provide comfort. Therefore, my view shifted from strai...