I considered this to partly be an ode to "the working man." Too many jobs have health consequences :(

I really liked this line: "The loneliness ached him more than the faltered breath." I do think loneliness hurts more than anything and there always seems to be an aspect of loneliness to any health "journey." There are parts in this path in life that one must walk alone.

I am curious what inspired this (if you want to share)?

I was also very struck by how you conveyed, he used to revel in it: "The perfume of his own wood lot, his own lumber yard. It lined the inside of his sinuses, and he relished it."

So often we humans revel in something that ultimately becomes our downfall or at least harmful to us.