With thanks to e.e. cummings for his poem

‘[i carry your heart with me(i carry it in]’

The year 2024 marks two decades of living in my disabled body. The previous 23 able-bodied years are hazy memories that hold no qualitative value in contrast with the years that followed. There have been many startling discoveries along the way, but the greatest of these was an abiding sense of wonder and eventual self-respect.