Hector Cardenas

March to the beat of your drum.

I started in 2021 with a challenge unlike any I have had before in 29 years. In the short time since, I have had to learn to redo all of the regular activities that brought meaning to my day, and I have to give up those that were not feasible, such as toting around open containers of my favorite snacks. Giving up my regular commute to the fridge and work vending machines has shaved off a few pounds, but giving up my dog walks took a heavy toll on my relationship with my pup. What I have traded off in loss of some independence I have learned to substitute with mindfulness, however. I fractured my left 5th metatarsal and am now bound to a crutch and boot for some time this year. The doctor described it as a “funny ho-ho ha-ha” kind of fracture that he’d like to heal noninvasively. While the road to recovery is still early in its stages, and I may be moving considerably slower than what I have been used to, I am resolved to modify my expectations not to be put down by this challenge and grow as I learn to navigate this new form.