What takes you back?

Bon appetit from Mile Marker 10,347!

Many miles ago, I wrote a little post called Back to Bacon. 

Back then, I was celebrating the Big 3-0.    

Mile 30 on this journey.

It felt like I had come a long way.  And also, not far at all.

I wobbled on the treadmill.  My prosthetic fit was iffy.  I was never sure where the next step would take me.  It was just too much to talk about.

So I talked about bacon instead.

Bacon took me back!

Fast forward many miles.

Mile 10,347 isn't about bacon...

It's about quiche!

I know.  

It's been miles since my last blog post.  I should have something more important to say.  But honestly, it's been a long few months.

And quiche?  It's the path I need right now.

Stick with me here.

On a rare coffee date with friends, I spotted these mini-quiche pans in the Italian Market.  

They reminded me of a patisserie I found in Nice, the year before my accident, where I picked up a mini-quiche for petit déjeuner à emporter.

Breakfast to go!

I traveled solo back then.  Partway through the trip, my friend Marla flew out to meet me so we could explore Provence together.  Quiche wasn't her thing, but Marla took this pic while eating a pain au chocolat! (a.k.a. chocolate croissant)

After the accident, I worried I'd never find the joy of travel again.  

"Maybe you can find a piece of it," my therapist suggested.

She didn't mean literally.  I was on a liquid diet.  My leg and abdomen were still healing.  I wasn't ready to be fitted for a prosthesis, much less go anywhere.  Traveling to her office was my biggest adventure. 

Let's face it.  At that point, I was eager for a piece of anything that would take me out of my current situation.  

So when I came home that afternoon, I ordered this cookbook from Amazon.  (And no, I wasn't able to cook yet.)

It was so heavy,
I couldn't even carry it myself!

That book didn't magically turn back the clock; it was a piece of my past that could help me move forward.

At Mile 10,347, I've spent the last month trying to adjust to a new prosthetic liner.  

In the life of an amputee, getting a new liner is a minor change.  Liners get old, they tear, they need to be replaced.  Little Leg and I should be used to this by now.

And yet, it's thrown my routine out the window.  

Mornings are frustrating.  

I readjust my leg multiple times per day.  

There are new skin rubs.

It sends shockwaves through a "hot spot" nerve.  

Sometimes I just take the whole thing off and use crutches.

When I think back on those bacon days, I'm surprised how much hasn't changed since then.

It's been 11 years.  Why does it feel like I'm getting nowhere?

Quiche to the rescue!

The kitchen is a disaster.  Baking is messy and takes a lot of standing time.  But at least my hands are busy and my mind is on better things.  

When I finally pull those quiches out of the oven, I end up in a brighter, more hopeful place than where I started.  (Also, yum!)

So, what takes you back?? 

Maybe it's not food at all.

Maybe it's a book, 

or a movie, 

or a scent, 

or a song.

A smaller thing with a bigger story.  

What takes you away when you need an escape?   What lights the way forward when you're unsure what's next?

Tell me about it.  

Maybe I'll try a piece of that too.

Bon appetit!

Rebecca

P.S.  Click here for the quiche recipe.  I've swapped ingredients -- gluten-free flour, vegan butter, etc. -- and it still turns out magnifique!  :)