02
Legacy
August 3, 2025 · 3 min read
Seeds of the Future — We Are Standing on Their Shoulders
The people before us planted ideas they might never see mature. We are living in the shade of their courage.
Read storyThe Living Again collection
Stories from a life still unfolding.
Reflections on MS, movement, love, caregiving, music, family, and the quiet work of finding yourself again.
Written in 2025. Revisited in 2026.Lightly updated for clarity and present understanding while preserving the heart and history of each story.
Possibility looks different for everyone.
BEGIN HERE
Love & Meaning · November 15, 2025
When We Forget Love (And How Life Reminds Us)
We are born knowing love. We forget it. Then life—sometimes gently, sometimes brutally—tries to remind us.
Read this reflection“We are here to remember love—and then pass that remembering on.”— Mike “Ondaroof”
TWENTY STORIES · ONE CONTINUING JOURNEY
Explore the collection.
Read in any order, or begin with the oldest story and follow the turning points as they happened.
03
Family & Wonder
July 17, 2025 · 3 min read
Chasing Fireflies: What My Grandson Taught Me About Living Again
A child waiting for the first flicker of light reminded me that healing can begin with wonder.
Read story04
Music & Mind
May 9, 2025 · 4 min read
Wired for Music: Why Our Brains Dance to the Beat
Music is companion, mood-lifter, movement cue, and time machine—and the brain helps explain why.
Read story05
Living With MS
May 4, 2025 · 5 min read
I’m Not Cured — But I’m Living Again
This isn’t a cure story or even a comeback story. It is a clarity story.
Read story06
Agency & Growth
May 2, 2025 · 5 min read
Who’s Driving This Thing Anyway?
Fear, fatigue, and shame may ride with us—but they do not have to make every decision.
Read story07
Practical Encouragement
April 24, 2025 · 5 min read
3 Gentle Ways to Get Moving When Fatigue Feels Too Big
Start small, connect movement with pleasure, and notice how your body responds instead of chasing somebody else’s number.
Read story08
Living With MS
April 24, 2025 · 6 min read
The Movement I Resisted: What Helped My Fatigue Spiral
Rest mattered, but complete withdrawal was making my world smaller. Gentle movement helped me find an opening.
Read story09
Turning Points
April 20, 2025 · 5 min read
Awake Now: Moving Through Pain, Rising in Love
The energy did not always arrive first. Sometimes one safe movement created enough space for hope to follow.
Read story10
Love & Caregiving
April 18, 2025 · 4 min read
Looking In, Missing Out: When Illness Narrows Our View
Sometimes the person holding the umbrella for us is also soaking wet, shivering, and hurting.
Read story11
Living With MS
April 13, 2025 · 4 min read
Stuck in Traffic, Every Day: What Chronic Illness Feels Like
A commute eventually ends. Chronic illness asks you to keep adapting without the promise of a clear finish line.
Read story12
Adaptive Adventure
April 8, 2025 · 3 min read
11 Years, 1 Journey, and a Whole Lot of Snow
The way I ski changed. The joy did not disappear—it adapted with me.
Read story13
Mobility & Identity
March 28, 2025 · 6 min read
To Walk or to Roll: Redefining Strength in the Face of Change
The strongest choice is not always the hardest one. Sometimes wisdom rolls instead of walks.
Read story14
Growth & Gratitude
March 21, 2025 · 4 min read
The Constant of Change: A Farewell to My Therapist
A good guide does not keep us dependent. They help us carry what we learned into the next chapter.
Read story15
Writing & AI
March 19, 2025 · 5 min read
It’s Not About Me—It’s About the Message
AI can help me shape the sentences. The life behind them—the memories, meaning, and responsibility—remains mine.
Read story16
Community & Belonging
March 14, 2025 · 5 min read
Vintage Empathy: A Letter to My Past Self
I thought I was moving into an apartment. What I found was a community that anticipated needs I could barely name.
Read story17
Adaptive Equipment
March 7, 2025 · 5 min read
Rolling Into Independence: My Experience With the Zeen
A mobility device gave me stability and confidence—and turned every hallway into an unexpected conversation.
Read story18
Humor & Legacy
February 28, 2025 · 6 min read
Living History: When You Realize You’re the History Lesson
I thought my therapist and I were reminiscing as peers. Then he told me he had read about my life in school.
Read story19
Meaning & Simplicity
February 21, 2025 · 5 min read
Redefining Success: What Does a Good Life Really Look Like?
I moved from a five-bedroom house to a one-bedroom apartment—and discovered that less space could hold more life.
Read story20
Love & Caregiving
January 31, 2025 · 7 min read
Through Sickness and Health: The Untold Story of Caregiving
Illness enters a relationship through one body, but its effects can reach both partners.
Read storyA NOTE FROM MIKE
These stories are not instructions for how anyone else must live.
They are honest records of what helped me, what I misunderstood, what I am still learning, and what became possible when I began meeting my life with curiosity instead of only fear.