This has been a very tumultuous year which is ending much better for me than when it began. I have much to be thankful for and many to thank for helping me along the long and difficult road to recovery from a crippling physical injury, which I have accepted and am learning daily to live with.

These last three months have been particularly refreshing. The beginning of October saw me able, for the first time in over a year and a half, to provide for my daily needs over the course of a week, establishing a "homestead" at an Intown Suites that allowed me access to doctor visits via taxi. Two weeks after that acquisition of a power chair gave me freedom from the taxis and access to the entire city via the Dallas transit system. And on the fourth week God created a Walmart next door! The wound-vac canisters that filled in two days are now half full after nine. God willing I will shed that "ball and chain" soon.

The laptop Foy and Wynetta gave me after my second hospital stay continues to be the gift that keeps on giving. I've even had my interest in Flight Simulator as a hobby rekindled. Having recently graduated to Flight Simulator X (FSX), I modified the Supercar instrument panel and am beginning to grasp the fundamentals of FS design. I have two scenery creation projects underway for inclusion in the program: the Lakewood Yacht Club, and my own "fantasy island."

And, I'm happy to report that I've again started writing fiction. I've been reading a lot of fiction lately and a couple of weeks ago, after finishing a Clive Cussler novel, I was hit with inspiration on with a sequel to A Journeyman's Rite. After all these years, the path became clear and I knew where to take the story. Yes, I'm feeling encouraged. 2009 is pregnant with promiss.