Living in a Body

Hi. This week marks the one year anniversary of the launch of “Living in a Body.” Yay! I’m glad you’re here. Please click the play button above to listen to the conversation between me and my friend, Peggy Munson . Peggy and Hal Hal Hi, I'm Hal and this is Living in a Body. And we're doing something called “Peggy and Hal.” Peggy Munson and I are having a conversation over the course of a month thr...

Hi. Welcome to Living in a Body. This week, I’m sharing a piece that I wrote a couple months ago. I hope you enjoy. The podcast version includes original music. Please click the play button above. Also, feel free to share. Thanks! King of the Khaen Have you ever heard of the melodious khaen? (Pronounced 'can') It's the grandmother of the harmonica. A three foot tall mouth organ made of bamboo pipe...

Hi. I’m Hal. Welcome to “Living in a Body.” Please click the Play button above to hear the podcast version of this publication. I hope you’ll share this episode with one friend. Thank you! Devastated Living with this illness is like being in the jaws of a monster and you never know when it's gonna take another chunk out of your life. This week, ME/CFS took another bite out of mine and I'm devastat...

Hi. I’m Hal. Welcome to “Living in a Body.” Please click the Play button above to hear the podcast version of this publication. I hope you’ll share this episode with one friend. Thank you! Recently, I had a long phone conversation with my new friend, Martin Keogh. I’m glad to share that conversation with you here today. Martin and I share the very difficult reality of having been living full creat...

Hi. I’m Hal and this is Living in a Body . Please click the play button above to listen to the podcast version of this publication. It includes original music! Feel free to leave your R-Z gratitude list in the comments! Alphabet of Gratitude: Part Three I struggled with the gratitude list this week. I haven't been feeling particularly grateful. With the onset of winter, I've been experiencing so m...

Hi. I’m Hal and this is Living in a Body . Please click the play button above to listen to the podcast version of this publication. It includes original music played on the RAV drum! Also, I’d love it if you’d share this post with one friend. Thanks!! Alphabet of Gratitude, Part Two During this season of Thanksgiving, I’ve been writing an extended alphabet of gratitude. Over the course of three we...

Hi. I’m Hal and this is Living in a Body. Please click the play button above to listen to the podcast version of this publication. It includes original music played on the RAV drum! Also, I’d love it if you’d share this post with one friend. Thanks!! Alphabet of Gratitude, Part One As we approach this season of Thanksgiving, I’ve decided to write an extended alphabet of gratitude. Over the next th...

Hi. I’m Hal. Thank you for being here. Georg and Hal My Best friend in late elementary school was my next door neighbor at the time, Georg Baumann. Last week, I called Georg on the phone and we talked for about an hour. He's in Rochester, New York now. The Walker and the Baumann families have stayed in touch over the years, but Georg and I haven't really spoken for more than a few minutes since si...

Hi. I’m Hal. Thank you for being here. I hope you’ll click the PLAY button above to listen to the Podcast version of this publication. (11 minute listen) Also, feel free to share this post with a friend. Credit goes to Brad Bolton for the photos of the UU Church of Kent musicians in today’s post. Enjoy! The Resignation This morning, I wrote a resignation letter for my position as the music directo...

Hi. I’m Hal. Thank you for being here. I hope you’ll click the “Listen Now” button above to listen to the Podcast version of this publication. (12 minute listen) Also, feel free to share this post with a friend. Enjoy! If I Were a Poet On Tuesday afternoon, riding on the middle path of Kent State University's front campus, I was overcome with beauty, grief and regret. Deep tears welled up from the...

Hi! I’m glad you’re here. Click the play button above to hear me read the story. Thank you so much for your support. I hope you’ll share this post with one friend. Thank you! Hal Listen As I was writing in bed this morning, the sound of a bird outside my window broke through the clouds of my morning meanderings.  I heard the nearby call and it made me quiet. I paused my writing just to listen. The...

Hi! I’m glad you’re here. Click the play button above to hear me read the story. (11 minute listen) Thanks so much for your support. I hope you’ll share this post with one friend. Thank you! Hal A Crewcut, a Cowlick and a Ponytail For years, I've been daring myself to chop it all off. Haircut after haircut, I show up at the Great Clips in Stow with the idea that this time I'm gonna request a crewc...

Hi. I’m Hal. This is part 3 in the coffee break series. Grab a cup of coffee or tea, sit back and enjoy. I hope you’ll share this publication with one friend. Thanks! The Battle Between I was the last person ever to see Ann Wigmore alive. She was up late sitting at the front desk of the Ann Wigmore Foundation on Commonwealth Avenue in the Back Bay of Boston. Right before bed, She and I exchanged a...

Hi. I’m Hal. Thanks for being here. This is part two of a four-part series called “Coffee Break.” If you missed it, click here to read part one - “The Muffin Man.” This week, I’ve turned the microphone over to my mom, my daughter and my three sisters. Click the play button above to hear their voices. Janet (Bestie) I was first  introduced to ‘Coffee Break' in 1958 when I worked at Norcross Greetin...

The Muffin Man My Dad was a Presbyterian minister, but my family’s religion was the ten o’clock coffee break — strong coffee with half and half and a pastry. If it doesn’t qualify as a religion, the Walker family coffee break definitely qualifies as an institution. In fact, back in 2006, my mom made individualized batik t-shirts for every member of the family. Each unique shirt pictured a steaming...

Prologue Before I begin this episode, I’d like to express my deep and sincere thanks to anyone and everyone who has donated to the “ Hal Walker Needs Our Help ” GoFundMe page. The success of this campaign has helped me pay for caregivers, doctors visits, medications and living expenses. Thanks to these funds, I’ve been free of the financial devastation that comes so readily with severe chronic ill...

I knew exactly where the Playboys were. I knew right where he kept ‘em. They were in the left hand closet of the master bedroom on the upper floor of the Peterson’s split level house. There was a tall stack of ‘em just sittin' there waitin' for me. My plan was to sneak in the house, run up the stairs, grab the magazines and be back out to the garage before anyone noticed. The plan seemed...

Hi. I’m Hal. Welcome to “ Living in a Body .” Thank you for being here. I recommend clicking the Listen Now button above. (12 min listen) Have you considered supporting my work by upgrading to a paid subscription? Hal and ME I was recently invited to be an ambassador of the Open Medicine Foundation. It will soon be my honor to take on this role. My job as an ambassador will be to support OMF's res...

Wheelchair Life My name is Harold Walker. When I was teaching in elementary schools, I was known as Mr. Halwalker. Many of the younger students thought Halwalker was my last name. I found it so endearing that I never corrected them. In fact, I encouraged it. Besides that, I've always been quite satisfied with the Walker name. It's a good last name to have. I come from a proud lineage of Walkers an...

Hi! I’m Hal. I wish a warm welcome to all the new subscribers. I’m honored that you’re here. Feel free to spread the word. Enjoy. The Blank Page As I'm sure you know by now, I'm housebound and mostly bedridden. Within the last year, Myalgic Ensephalomyelitis has turned my life upside-down. But just so you know, the illness hasn't taken my spirit. One day at a time, I keep showing up to the blank p...

Hi. I’m Hal. Today’s episode is a bona fide rant and it’s best experienced through audio. Please click the “ Listen Now ” button above. Also, I’d love it if you’d share this episode with one person. I’m so grateful that you’re here. Enjoy. The “How Are You” Dilemma If you’ve been following my posts here at “ Living in a Body, ” you’ll know that I never rant — 26 episodes and not a single rant. I d...

Hi. I’m Hal. I’m living with moderately severe ME/CFS . Fifteen minutes at a time, I wrote this post over the course of a week. I’m so grateful for this outlet to express myself and I’m so grateful for your caring attention. Please feel free to share. Searching for a Peace Sign I haven’t been doing much traveling lately. But last night, I dreamed that I was on a bicycle trip with my sister and my...

Hi. I’m Hal. I’m living with moderately severe ME/CFS . Fifteen minutes at a time, I wrote this post over the course of a week. I’m so grateful for this outlet to express myself and I’m so grateful for your caring attention. Please feel free to share. Following in His Footsteps My Dad was a giant — a very humble giant, but a giant nonetheless. His name was Rev. Harold Walker Jr. I’m Harold lll. Th...

Hi. I’m Hal. I’m living with moderately severe ME/CFS . Fifteen minutes at a time, I wrote this post over the course of a week. I’m so grateful for this outlet to express myself and I’m so grateful for your caring attention. Please feel free to share. The God-Sized Hole I’ve been thinking a lot about God lately. I was all by myself in my float tank yesterday and we were having a conversation. I sa...

Hi. This week, WKSU did a 35 minute feature on my story of living with ME/CFS. I was joined by the the Founder and CEO/President of Open Medicine Foundation , Linda Tannenbaum. I so appreciate my friend Jeff StClair, who helped to make the whole thing happen. I know I ask this a lot, but this time I’m serious… Would you please share this post with one person? Please help spread the word about this...