Still Landing

It is nice to be home.  I have altogether three free days before returning to work this Wednesday.  I am glad to take my time like this as I reenter and reintegrate into my ordinary life in Vancouver.  I am feeling stronger today, though not still quite one hundred percent.  Saturday night, from when I set foot in my apartment, I was a basket case.  Even the next day I still had trouble moving, but also knew that I always recover best and fastest by getting busy with things.  No one else is going to get them done.  I had to get grocery shopping done, anyway, so I arranged to meet a friend for coffee.  There is something grounding about visiting a friend the day after coming home from an extended trip.  We did a huge walk together that included grocery shopping, and I was actually stronger than I thought I'd be.  I did feel weak for a while after we reached Stanley Park, but after sitting for a while on a bench in the Denman mall I felt better again, and actually walked nearly two miles back to my home while dragging a bag of groceries.

Still, I have been taking care to reduce activity a little, and to stop and rest in between tasks, duties and appointments.  Today I'm feeling even stronger and managed five miles of segmented walking.  One mile to Service Canada to see about applying early for my Canada Pension; an extended walk of two miles on my way home that included a historical and scenic part of the West End.  At home I relaxed with lunch and listened to the CBC while working on a drawing and finishing my taxes.  Then I slipped into a twenty minute nap.  I left thirty-five minutes earlier to fit in a walk on the seawall before meeting a friend for coffee nearby.  I was treated to a close up of a male Anna's hummingbird, every bit as beautiful as the rock star species I saw in Costa Rica.  A reminder of Monteverde and also an indication that beauty can be found anywhere I wish to find it.  Following our coffee visit I mailed in my tax return, then returned home.  In between writing this, preparing dinner and doing art work I am still taking care to sit and rest.

Air travel, as well as being in a foreign country can really knock it out of you and I like this idea of a slow, integrated return.  The cool, sweet air of the early spring is something that can never be duplicated in a tropical climate.  The fresh arrival of the blossoms and flowers would never give us the same thrill if we were privileged to see them bloom all year.  There really is no place like home, though it is also wise to remember that home is wherever we happen to find ourselves because wherever we go we are bringing ourselves with us.