The first morning without the pain in my chest

Dear Delyara, After six months of battling a severe, chronic inflammation that made every deep breath feel like a hot needle pressing into my lung, I woke up at 5:00 AM today to a strange, beautiful silence inside my chest. I sat on the edge of the bed, closed my eyes, and took a slow, deep, unrestricted breath. My lungs expanded completely, filling with the cool, fresh Scottish air, without a single cough or a single spark of pain. I sat there in the dark, tears of pure, emotional relief running down my cheeks, just breathing in and out. You don't appreciate the simple, quiet miracle of oxygen until you have had to fight for every single breath. My body is healing, my strength is returning, and I am ready to live again.