I wrote before about how emotional it was
for me the first time I used the walker in public, away from my more private
walk to the car. I found myself still resistant to take it out of the car, and
would struggle with the cane.
There are pros and cons for both. The cane
is smaller, doesn’t take up space in a restaurant or store, but it keeps one of
your hands occupied and that can prove awkward. The walker has a built in seat,
a carrying container and stands on its own so you can have your hands free. But
the walker takes up space that makes moving about more of a challenge. Like
opening doors. The walker is in front of you so you can’t reach for the door to
pull or push it open. You need to use the automatic door openers, which slows
traffic if people are coming in the door behind you. And there’s always that
question of where to put it, like in a restaurant, so it doesn’t block the
aisle and trip anyone.
After the MS Walk in May, which my family
did en mass, we decided we wanted team shirts for next year’s walk. My friend
tells me one can do this quite easily by creating a design on the computer and
printing it on special sheets that will iron the design onto your shirt. She
makes it sound so easy and got me all enthusiastic. But first I needed the
shirts, all fourteen of them.
Michaels Craft Store has all the supplies
for this, including T-shirts in a rainbow of colours and assorted sizes. So my
friend and I made a trip to the craft store when I saw the shirts were on
sale…2 for $6.00. I do so love a bargain.
I drove that day, and conveniently had the
walker in the back. At the store I told my friend I was going to use it, and
she understood that this was another milestone for me.
I parked myself in front of the shirt
display and sat. It took some time to find a colour that had every size
available from adult extra large down to youth small, but I finally did it.
And, I can admit now, only did it because I was sitting and not constantly dealing
with the pain of standing, bending and juggling cane and purse.
Sometimes we old dogs have trouble learning
new tricks. Oh boy, here’s another one, sometimes practice makes perfect. Why
do I feel like I just had a conversation with my mother? LOL
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