April 30, 2026 — Between Steps and Stillness
The morning began slowly, wrapped in heaviness. Even the sound of the alarm felt distant, like something calling from far away. It took time to rise. Small routines followed—warm drinks, quiet preparation, familiar motions that gently carried the day forward. Outside, the world felt a little crowded. Movements crossed paths, bodies brushed past, moments slightly out of sync. A step here, a bump there—nothing major, yet enough to be felt. At the hospital, the air shifted. Conversations became more serious, words like procedure, extraction, anaesthetic settling quietly into the space. Not everything needed to be done today— but enough was said to remind me that something lies ahead. Still, I stayed. I listened. I took it in. The afternoon unfolded in small adjustments— a meal that wasn’t what I planned, a drink chosen anyway, decisions softened, not forced. Voices came and went. Some kind, some careless. I kept walking. Back home, the weight returned in a different way— in words...