"Grandma? Are you stuck again?"
She'd been trying to stand up for almost two minutes. The moment she put weight on her right knee, something hot and sharp pressed through the joint and forced her back down. So she was crawling toward the porch steps — using them to lever herself upright — hoping Lily wouldn't see.
"Just resting, sweet pea," Susan said. "Grab the watering can, would you?"
Lily went for the can. Susan made it to the porch and stood.
She was 52 years old.
She'd been dealing with this for two years. Stiffness in the morning that took an hour to loosen. An ache that set in around 3 PM and stayed until she was off her feet. A flight of stairs that required a handrail. Getting out of the car that required a moment, a plan, a decision about which leg to lead with.
She'd tried what everyone tries:
- Turmeric capsules — two different brands, four months total
- Glucosamine and chondroitin — the expensive kind from the health food store
- A prescription anti-inflammatory she'd taken every morning for most of a year
- Two cortisone shots, eight months apart
- A topical cream, three different heating pads, an ice routine her physical therapist gave her
All of them worked. For a few hours. Then the ache came back, every single time, exactly where it had been. She'd told her doctor. He'd nodded. He'd suggested she "stay active and keep the weight off the joint."




