Back when Ray was a little fella and still couldn’t walk. Picking up and carrying around my 25-pound three-year-old son would cause my back to ache. I needed to use a cane because of my back and leg weakness. Thankfully he learned to walk before he turned four.
The problem with my sore back and legs persisted. For years I felt resigned to living with pain or having surgery as the orthopedic doctor recommended. When we moved back to our hometown, I met with a new specialist who diagnosed my problem and offered better options than spinal surgery.
I began physical therapy in 1996. I continued to suffer with chronic pain and wondered if things would ever be different. But each week, the therapist would assign a series of exercises for me to do at home.
One of the therapies was riding a stationary bike three times a week. Other exercises included stretching and core strengthening floor exercises. As I developed a routine of attending therapy and doing the exercises at home, I could walk further without the cane.
I continued to ride the bike and do the other exercises after I finished going to the therapist. Six months after starting PT, my back pain and leg weakness were gone, and I ditched the cane for good. Today, I continue doing the physical therapy routine twice a week and riding a bike four times a week, whether outside or in the gym on the first floor of our building.
How I thank God for the wisdom of doctors and therapists to use their training to bring me healing. The Lord has helped me persist, and as I celebrate my 70th birthday, I’m still going strong.
A Goldilocks Life 