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On the way to a slow recovery
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Does my title herald another political treatise? Well it might, because that is the message of some politicians and pundits. It is also my personal message of the moment.

I write this on Friday afternoon of a week in which I can really see light at the end of this "tunnel summer."

Now, if I am careful and don't mess up again, I should see real progress. On Monday the immobilizer on my left leg was replaced by a slightly stretchable knee brace, and the wheelchair by a rolling walker.

The home health therapist will be helping me transfer to a cane soon, but I won't be completely free of the knee brace and walker until after the next visit to the orthopedic doctor in several weeks.

Even this much freedom, however, is encouraging.

Frankly, I have become quite lazy - no cleaning, no real cooking, not accepting church or civic responsibilities. So now, I must shake my lethargy and begin to fill in some calendar dates.

Already I have been for a badly needed haircut and am planning "walkering" into church on Sunday.

I won't brag about the other events I have written on my calendar; best to wait and be sure that I can live up to those commitments.

At least I do not have much conflicting advice about the steps I should be taking to achieve this recovery, and the same cannot be said about our country's economic recovery.

There's scarcely anyone who has failed to tell President Barack Obama what he should have done, be doing, and plan to do.

On a lesser scale, I'm sure that Gov. Nathan Deal and Commission Chairman Mike Berg have received similar pieces of advice. (I am not sure how all these advisors have accrued so much intelligence.)

Unfortunately, there seems to be little need to advise legislators on the national and state levels: All their courses appear to be set by their political agendas and they seem determined to stay the course.

Perhaps it is possible to move slowly toward economic well-being despite entrenched political positions.

Wouldn't it be a good time for capitalism to flex muscles and show strength?

Certainly, action from some quarter is needed.

Of course, I must admit that before I took the tumble that injured my leg, I was not walking briskly or climbing stairs or even rising easily from a seated position.

My back muscles had noticeably weakened as I moved into my 80's, and balance was definitely not good. So I cannot expect an instant transformation: In truth, I will still be 87, even if I walk without a cane.

Some comparison with economic recovery is obvious. We did not get into recession overnight, and we may not return robustly in exactly the same areas where earlier strengths were.

But, thankfully, my general health is good and I am trying to keep a positive attitude.

Let's pray that the same can be said for our state and nation.

Helen Taylor's column appears periodically in the Dawson Community News.