verylongfarewell | 28 | the wheels on the bus

So, yesterday (and I'm saying 'yesterday', because it's 2am and I'm sleepless) was sure a day. A good one! But also a very overwhelming one. In the morning, my assisted living person came by and we walked to the bus stop where I also, actually, for the first time since January, got on a bus and drove a stop, then got off again and crossed a street (another first since breaking my ankle), got on the bus back on the other side and walked home. I know this must sound so insanely banal, but I have literally not been able to move outside my apartment for six months, halfway due to my leg injury, halfway due to crippling anxiety. Today was my first taste of freedom in all this time. It was important. I was so massively proud of myself.

And my foot didn't even complain too much. A little swelling as expected, but no pain or discomfort. No muscles pulled, nothing. It was such a confidence boost.

Later today, I'm going to try walking to our nearby store, which is about the same distance away as our bus stop, and see if that might be a distance I'm comfortable walking in the future.

Just keep walking, as they say.

I've engaged a bit with the fantasy idea I mentioned. Wrote a small piece from that storyline and I like it, I'm definitely going to use it for when November comes around. For now, I'm getting back into the Jean Louis and Marie-Claude project that my girlfriend and I are going to work on over summer and which I've neglected a bit while working on The Lover of Lilith and getting distracted by shinies. I always feel at home with Marie-Claude, she's such a comfort character to me.

I look forward to July. So much.

Also, I have a friend in my writing Discord who studies French and helped me last year with translating some poems by Anise Koltz to Danish. She did it for no fee at all, and I've felt lowkey bad about that ever since, because it's a very good translation and I'm using it a lot for the Marie-Claude stuff I write now.

So, I decided to ask her if she wants my book of Anise Koltz's poetry as a thank you gift. It's used (much-used and much-loved in its time) and there are notes in the margin, plus underlinings, but it's been well taken care of and has followed me, almost since the beginning of my work with Marie-Claude as a character. However, that was back when I wrote her in english and somehow, now that I have the poetry I need in Danish, it feels like the right time to let it go and give it to someone who can maybe use it to spread awareness of this poet to a Danish audience, if she wants. Or just enjoy it for herself.

It just feels right.

She was very happy with the offer, so I'll be sending it to her in July, when I can conceivably walk to the nearby postal store myself. I'll include a letter telling the story of what these poems have meant to Marie-Claude and to me.

And it feels a bit like letting go of a part of past me that is long overdue.

I have the book, Flygtige Ord, that I still need to finish and I kinda want to get started on The Little Prince before we start working on the project, too. I'm probably not going to finish either beforehand, but then I can read on the side. For inspiration.

Getting tired, so should probably ride that wave to bed... It's half past 2am. Goodnight.