Recovery isn’t disappearing. Sometimes it’s simply leaving the porch light on, the kettle warm, and trusting the people who love you to understand if you answer the door wrapped in three blankets.

Content Note: This post discusses post-surgical recovery, chronic illness, disability, fatigue, medical anxiety, and the ongoing practice of learning to rest. As always, this is a place where you’re welcome exactly as you are.

🏡 Welcome to The Den

Welcome back to The Crippled Cryptid.

Disability.

Chronic illness.

Service dogs.

Survival without the performance.

If you’re new here…

Hi.

I’m Sky.

Professional Cryptid.

Writer.

Advocate.

Bookworm.

Professional collector of strange facts.

Human being with a nervous system that occasionally wakes up and chooses violence before breakfast.

By the time you’re reading this, one of two things is happening.

If I’m lucky, I’m upstairs at the back table with a mug of coffee in my hands, watching Luna tackle a breakfast puzzle like it’s the most important mission she’s ever been assigned…

The windows are open.

The coffee smells amazing.

Music is drifting softly through the speakers.

It’s one of those quiet mornings that reminds me healing isn’t always found in the big milestones. Sometimes it’s tucked inside ordinary moments we almost forget to notice.

Or…

I’m still nestled beneath an impressive fortress of blankets, one week out from surgery, reminding myself that healing isn’t laziness.

Truthfully, with the smoke and air quality warnings I can tell you with absolute certainty… the windows aren’t open.

Pain medication makes time fuzzy.

Everything still aches.

The dishes can wait.

The words will still be here tomorrow.

Healing asks us to move slower than we’re used to.

I’m still learning how to say yes.

Either way…

But I still wasn’t about to miss Thursday.

Even if I was up at 4:30am to get the Yard Yeti to the farmer’s market, and then back home for a nap.

🌲 The Porch Light

Thursday has quietly become one of my favorite days around here.

Not because life magically gets easier.

It doesn’t.

Bodies still hurt.

Appointments still happen.

The weather still insists on arguing with my nervous system.

But Thursdays have become something different.

A pause.

A porch.

A place where nobody has to pretend they’re doing better than they are.

You don’t have to knock.

You don’t have to explain where you’ve been.

Just come in.

There isn’t any inspiration porn here.

No “everything happens for a reason.”

No expectation that you’ll transform your pain into a motivational speech before you’re allowed to sit down.

Just people.

Doing their best.

Sometimes that best looks like celebrating.

Sometimes it looks like surviving.

Sometimes it looks like getting out of bed, drinking a glass of water, and making it back to bed again.

Honestly?

Sometimes that is the victory.

That’s what The Den has become.

Not because of me.

Because of all of us.

Every comment.

Every story.

Every “me too.”

Every Thursday we’ve spent reminding one another that we’re not wandering these woods alone.

That no matter how strange life gets…

There’s always another chair waiting on the porch.

🐾 Luna’s Household Recovery Report

Attention, everyone.

Household status update.

🐾 Mumther has accepted assistance.

(After extensive negotiations.)

🐾 Medication successfully consumed.

🐾 Ice packs have been rotated on schedule.

🐾 Blanket nest remains warm and structurally sound.

🐾 Unauthorized cleaning projects have been intercepted before they became “just one little thing.”

🐾 Coffee levels remain acceptable.

Overall Pack Assessment

Patient continues to display impressive levels of stubbornness.

Support system continues to display impressive levels of patience.

Additional naps are strongly recommended.

I will continue supervising from a distance of approximately six inches.

🐾

🌿 What’s Carrying Me This Week

This week feels like standing in a doorway.

One step away from surgery.

One step toward recovery.

It’s honestly hard to believe that last Thursday at this same time I was being wheeled into an operating room to become one less part cyborg.

There’s anxiety.

I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t.

There’s relief too.

I’ve waited a long time for this.

Healing has been slower than my brain would like…

…and faster than my anxiety expected.

I think that’s probably a healthy place to be.

M&M has spent the week gently reminding me that “feeling a little better” does not mean reorganizing the garage.

Apparently, that’s still not doctor’s orders.

Who knew?

The Yard Yeti continues to appear with grilled cheese sandwiches at deeply unreasonable hours of the night.

I’m convinced that’s one of the highest forms of love.

I’m also learning something I wish came easier.

Accepting help isn’t failing.

It’s allowing the people who love you to love you.

That’s harder than it sounds.

I’m practicing.

If I’m feeling up to it, M&M and I have been invited over to my grandfather’s house this weekend for homemade meatballs.

Naturally, we’ll be bringing dessert.

Right now, we’re torn between making pouding au chômeur, a cozy French-Canadian dessert from Quebec, or dusting off another old family dessert he may not have tasted since he was a little boy.

Honestly…

Either one sounds like love served on a plate.

Then there’s Luna.

She’s been hovering.

Not snack hovering.

Not ball hovering.

Medical alert hovering.

Following me from room to room.

Watching me just a little more closely.

Choosing to stay nearby even when absolutely nothing interesting is happening.

She’s done this enough times that I’ve learned to trust her instincts before I trust my own.

She’s rarely wrong.

🐾 Luna’s Weather Report

I regret to inform everyone that the sky remains dramatic.

Thunderstorms.

Humidity.

Pressure changes.

Heat that should frankly apologize.

And now… smoke from the wildfires in Canadia.

⭐☆☆☆☆

No biscuits.

Would not recommend.

Also…

Who approved ninety-degree weather before noon?

Certainly not me.

🐾

The Illinois weather has certainly been… ambitious.

It feels like Mother Nature spun a wheel labeled “Everything” and decided the answer was yes.

Needless to say…

Neither Luna nor I were particularly impressed.

But then…

Life surprised us.

🐾 Under Our Roof

There’s one more thing I have to tell you.

One more surprise this week.

One we weren’t expecting quite so soon.

The Potato™ is home.

If you’ve been wandering these woods with us for a while, you know we’d been counting down the days until he joined our little family.

It was planning to be the last Sunday of the month.

As it turns out…

Life had other plans.

Sometimes plans change because life gets in the way.

Sometimes they change because life quietly hands you something wonderful a little earlier than expected.

This was the second kind.

He’s still settling in.

Still figuring out where all the best nap spots are.

Still discovering that absolutely everything deserves a thorough investigation.

Blankets.

Leaves.

Shoelaces.

Luna’s ears.

His own feet.

He’s growing into paws that seem determined to arrive several weeks before the rest of him.

He’s wonderfully awkward.

Wonderfully curious.

Wonderfully…

Potato.

Luna has officially been promoted to Big Sister.

She’s handling it exactly the way I hoped she would.

With patience.

With curiosity.

With the occasional look that very clearly says,

“Excuse me… why is the tiny cow not playing ball?”

She’s showing him the yard.

Teaching him the household rules.

Reminding him that some toys are shared…

…and some are absolutely, positively hers.

Watching the two of them begin to learn each other has been one of the brightest parts of a week that otherwise asked a lot from all of us.

The Pack feels a little fuller now.

So does my heart.

Healing is still happening.

The pain is still real.

But joy has a funny habit of showing up anyway.

Sometimes it arrives with oversized paws.

Sometimes it answers to Potato.

And Binky… because someone is a whiny baby who does not enjoy sleeping in his crate.

So, you know we broke down, covered the bed in old blankets and towels just in case and piled on the bed all together.

🐾 Luna’s Official Big Sister Report

Attention.

The suspiciously large potato has arrived.

Current observations:

🐾 Extremely clumsy.

🐾 Appears to have misplaced at least two of his feet.

🐾 Requires frequent naps.

🐾 Acceptable cuddle quality.

🐾 Shows great enthusiasm.

🐾 Needs continued supervision.

I have reached a professional conclusion.

He may stay.

🐾🐾

🌿 Your Thursday Check-In

Enough about me.

How are you?

Really.

Not the answer you’d give someone in passing.

Not the automatic “I’m fine.”

The real one.

If today feels heavy…

If your body feels loud…

If your mind won’t stop racing…

Let’s make the question a little smaller.

🌿 One word for today.

🌿 One thing your body needs.

🌿 One thing you survived this week.

That’s enough.

It all counts.

If you can…

Relax your jaw.

Drop your shoulders.

Unclench your hands.

Take a sip of water.

Shift into a position that’s a little kinder to your body.

Take one slow breath.

You don’t have to solve your whole life before dinner.

You only have to get through today.

Sometimes…

That’s the bravest thing we’ll do all week.

One of my favorite things about Thursdays is that this isn’t really my check-in anymore.

It’s ours.

🐾 Luna Says…

Hydration check.

Yes.

You.

I’m talking to you.

Go take a sip.

I’ll wait.

…

Good job.

Carry on.

🐾

🌙 Learning to Rest

I’ve spent a lot of my life believing that pushing through was the only option.

Sometimes…

It was.

Sometimes surviving meant ignoring everything my body was trying to tell me because there simply wasn’t another choice.

That version of me deserves compassion.

She got me here.

But survival isn’t where we’re supposed to build a permanent home.

It’s the bridge.

Not the destination.

Recovery isn’t something we earn after we’ve pushed ourselves to the breaking point.

Sometimes recovery begins the moment we give ourselves permission to rest before our bodies have to force the issue.

I’m still learning what that looks like.

Some days I do pretty well.

Other days I catch myself thinking,

“Maybe I could just fold the laundry…”

Thankfully…

I have people who are much better at reminding me than I am at listening.

M&M.

The Yard Yeti.

Luna.

Potato.

Aunt Lise.

My Dad…

And it just keeps growing.

My little Pack.

They’re teaching me that healing isn’t something I have to earn.

Sometimes it’s something I have to allow.

They’re reminding me that productivity isn’t the measure of a life.

Love is.

Presence is.

Showing up for one another is.

Even if showing up looks like sitting quietly on the porch with a cup of coffee while the dogs wrestle in the yard.

Maybe especially then.

I’m finally trying to believe them.

🐾 Luna’s Recovery Reminder

Today’s approved activities include:

🐾 Guard Mumther.

🐾 Supervise Potato.

🐾 Take a nap.

🐾 Encourage everyone else to take a nap.

🐾 Repeat as necessary.

I fail to see the problem.

🐾

🌲 Before You Wander Back Into the Woods…

The blog is going to slow down just a little while I heal.

That’s okay.

Healing deserves time too.

I’ve worked ahead where I could.

Folklore Wednesdays are waiting.

Bed Jail™ Broadcasts are already queued up.

Stories are standing patiently in line.

And every now and then…

I’ll be granted a little parole from Bed Jail™ to come sit on the porch with all of you.

Because I missed this.

I missed you.

Thank you.

For reading.

For laughing with me.

For crying with me.

For sharing your stories.

For letting this strange little corner of the internet become something far bigger than I ever imagined.

When I started this blog, I hoped I’d find people who understood.

Instead…

I found a community.

A family.

A Den.

You built this place with me.

Board by board.

Story by story.

Comment by comment.

Week by week.

I don’t think I’ll ever stop being grateful for that.

This little corner of the woods feels even more like home now.

🌿 Before You Wander Back Into the Woods…

Before you head back out into the world…

Take these with you.

🌿 Drink the water.

🌿 Eat something if your body will let you.

🌿 Rest before your body has to beg for it.

🌿 Let someone help if they’re offering.

🌿 Celebrate the small victories.

🌿 Existing is enough.

🌿 You never have to earn your place here.

🐾 Luna’s Official Assessment

Current Pack Status:

🐾 Mumther healing.

🐾 M&M supervising.

🐾 Yard Yeti making sure nobody goes hungry.

🐾 Potato discovering that every object in existence might secretly be a toy.

🐾 Big Sister duties proceeding according to plan.

🐾 Porch light still on.

Five out of five paws.

Pack complete.

Approved.

🐾🐾

The porch light stays on.

Even when I need to rest.

Especially then.

🏡 The Porch Light Is On

Whenever you need somewhere to sit for a while…

Pull up a chair.

The coffee might still be warm.

The kettle’s probably singing.

Luna will almost certainly inspect your pockets for snacks.

Potato is probably asleep somewhere he absolutely wasn’t supposed to be.

M&M is likely reminding me that healing counts as productivity.

The Yard Yeti is probably making grilled cheese at an hour that should be illegal.

The fire is crackling.

The porch light is glowing.

And whether you’ve had the best week of your life…

Or you’re simply trying to make it through today…

You’re welcome here.

Always.

We’ll leave the porch light on. ❤️

Love you, now say it back.

-Sky
© The Crippled Cryptid
Disability. Honesty. A little chaos.

(Maybe a little dog fur.)

🔗 https://linktr.ee/skylanarissa
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