A really good day at work.

When you’ve lived with chronic pain,

moving gracefully is a big deal.

It can be hard to feel beautiful in a stumble

in a muffled struggle to stay upright

with ancient clay sitting in the febrile joints of the hips.

I hold stillness onstage because, frankly

some part of me is still scared of falling down.

In front of all of you.

But

this body has become a story of resiliency

in a hundred unfolding chapters

humming to the tune of mercy

and in this full treatment room on a rainy Sunday

softly alive with community qi

I slide seamlessly between moments

more easily than anywhen or anywhere else –

moving like a slow-motion dancer.

Today, even my mistakes

are perfect.