For all writers

For all writers

Monday, November 16, 2009



Wow! What a crazy last few days! See those hands in the picture? Well, that's EXACTLY where my ankle/foot hurts! I was (as my husband most eloquently put it) "running 90 miles an hour with my hair on fire" last Friday morning, on my way to pick up my Aunt for her therapy session when I took a tumble down our back steps! Coffee, mail, keys, my purse.....they all went flying as I lay sprawled out on the concrete, sick at my stomach from the pain! I hadn't hurt like that in a very long time and it took me a while to get my bearings. I fished around in the pile of leaves for my cell phone and found it quickly. I called my knight in shining armor and he came running. Of course he was concerned and, if you know Eldon, you know that he doesn't handle emergencies very well. He began to run around like a chicken with his proverbial head cut off while I lay there moaning. He disappeared for a short time and I wondered if he had gone to get something to get me up with; like maybe a crane?!? He came back a few minutes later with a glass of water and 2 Aleve!!! Bless his heart! He said breathlessly, "Here! This is for the pain!" I tell you, I would've jumped up and popped him in the head with one of those "I coulda had a V8" slaps if I wasn't in so much pain!

I dutifully took the pills and gulped them down, all the time trying to encourage him to grab hold of me and try to get me up. Seems every way we tried hurt like a son-of-a-fun and I wasn't helping too much either! He finally got me up and limping over to an old wheelchair we've had since the years his grandparents lived with us. I plopped down into it with a thud and he wheeled me up into the kitchen for a better look.

The ankle was already swelling, red and I was still feeling nauseous so we decided to get an xray. Why oh why did I think that was a good idea? My daughter, CeCe, came running when called and transported me to the ER. That was a whole 'nother story! After dutifully filling out all required paperwork and answering all questions, I was put into a room only to be whisked away again for xrays. After xrays, it was back to the little room to wait for the doctor. He came in and poked and prodded on my ankle and foot (very warm hands, by the way) then told me it wasn't broken, only "severely sprained". He recommended I go home and put my foot up with ice, rest and take the pain pills he prescribed. Little did he know I had plans for something quite different that day but they would just have to wait!

Needless to say, the Aunt's therapy got cancelled and most everything else I wanted to do that Friday. I spend the weekend with my foot, resting on an ice pack and elevated above my heart. Let me tell you, in case you were wondering, wheelchairs aren't nearly as much fun as they look and crutches are even less! My hips, knees and legs are sore from the fall and my shoulders, underarms and back are sore from the crutches! Not for the faint of heart, I assure you!

All that to say, I have a newfound respect for people with disabilities. You know, the people that drive the vehicles that get to park in the best parking spaces because they're painted with blue and the wheelchair logo? Well, trust me. Now I know why those parking spaces are so important. I wouldn't even want to attempt parking and walking all that way on crutches, let alone getting a wheelchair out of my vehicle! The whole thing is exasperating as well as exhausting and my hat's off to those precious people that do that day in and day out without so much as a sigh! I have come to realize I am very blessed with my two legs and two feet, my eyes that see great (except closeup) and my hearing is good too. In this season of Thanksgiving, I found out that I have so much more to be thankful for than even I ever realized!

I hope you don't have to have something like this happen to you for you to realize that you are blessed too~ Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!