Two Years Ago – Wow

 

Facebook memories never meant much to me.  But now they have become very interesting. Looking back into where I was, one year back, and two years back, what an eventful trip it has become. 

It happened twice this month. The first time it happened as I was working on my book. It cracks me up that I would say that, working on my book, well, I was working on something. Something that might turn into a book.

But check this out. I was working on chapter 5 which is called “Starting to write.” And I was commenting about the first thing I had written, post-stroke. And up comes an Email from facebook, “You have memories to look back on today” So I clicked on it and there was my first post-stroke post. The first thing I had written, exactly two years ago. July 22, 2021.  Wow, the first words that flowed from the brain to the paper.  Oops, I said flowed, that is the WRONG WORD, maybe dribbling onto the paper is better. 

And four days later, it happened again. “You have memories to look back on today” and there was a post from one year back, July 26, 2022. Here I was talking about my bucket list, and I toyed with the idea of writing a book. The post was called, ”A list of impossible dreams.” Well, as it stands, it might become chapter 16, in that thing that might turn into a book. 

Wow, “As it stands, it might become chapter 16.” That sentence is so powerful.

From two years ago, relearning how to write, to one year ago, where I was regularly writing and posting in my blog, to now, where I am actually working on a book. Two years of progress all wrapped up in a couple of posts. July is turning into a good month. There is an adage about productivity, people overestimate how much they can accomplish in a day, and underestimate how much they can accomplish in a year.  That is true, particularly when you are thinking about therapy. Day by day nothing seems to change, But year by year, wow.

Sometimes I want to give up. It is so daunting as I think back to how easy writing used to be. But it is so encouraging to see how far I have gone. Not day by day, but year by year.  I have said that I am living day by day. Facing every day as it comes. I am still doing that. Day by day is how I think about the future. But I can see the progress year by year in retrospect. That gives me hope, and it gives me patience. So thank you Facebook, yeah, I have memories to look back on.

So, since July has become a good month I thought I would post this. Maybe it will become another memory for facebook. Maybe I will be reading it in one year as I am looking in amazement at what has been done. Progress, year at a time.