Art,
Your story is a moving testament to me about how I can learn to do more to slow down and appreciate what is, even if I am not faced with a life-threatening illness…..perhaps ESPECIALLY BECAUSE I am not faced with a life-threatening illness. The jewel-like preciousness of sharing a moment with another, of appreciating the smells, sights, and sounds all around when I just allow myself to slow down…..these are gifts that you have given to me on this day. As I walk home (push my little scooter, actually) on this crisp fall day, I will “slow it down by half and half again…..(and) Enjoy it twice as much.”
With a grateful breath of appreciation for who you are in this world.