The past 48 hours have been quite eventful. It all started when my precious little Dixie spiked a fever yesterday. Her clinginess and fussiness made it challenging to get much done, but my heart ached for her because she clearly felt awful. This morning, I made the decision to take her to the animal hospital, where she was admitted. Thankfully, she’s doing a bit better now, which is such a relief.

With Dixie in the care of the vets, I finally found a bit of time for myself today. I decided to purchase a day pass to our local Wellness Center and Gym. The experience was almost surreal, bringing back memories of the last time I was there—back in March 2020. I remember that day vividly because it was when then-President Donald Trump met with other heads of state to announce the shutdown of the government and the economy due to the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic. Standing by the treadmills with a group of other gym-goers, as we watched the news on the TV, we all had this unsettling feeling that our world as we knew it was coming to an end. And in many ways, it did, especially for my husband and me. As both of us are immunocompromised, and for a few years, our lives were completely upended.

It wasn’t until last year that my husband’s immune system began to regenerate and recover, which allowed us to finally return to some semblance of normalcy, like grocery shopping. For someone like me, who suffers from memory loss issues due to my disabilities, something as simple as holding a banana in a grocery store, feeling it, and smelling it was incredibly grounding and comforting.

Today’s experience at the gym brought back a similar sense of normalcy. Feeling the equipment, smelling the chlorine in the pool, and enjoying a good cup of coffee from the refreshment area—it all felt so good! It was as if I had returned from a long vacation at the beach, refreshed and rejuvenated.

If anyone has a wellness center in your area, I greatly encourage using it! It’s a great way to unwind most days, especially if you can’t afford a vacation right now. And many of them even have massage therapists on staff.

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