Break a leg.... I don't see how that expression is meant to mean good luck. It sure isn't me. Now that the holidays are upon us, it's time to break out the decorations, participate in family traditions, and celebrate the joy of the season. Well, so far I am batting two out of three. Well, I broke out the decorations, but also broke my ankle. Like all our neighbors this weekend, we got out our decorations and took advantage of the nice weather to put up our outdoor lights. Who knew it would turn out to be an extreme sport? After trimming our Carolina Sapphire pine tree to dress it up for Christmas, I strung the lights on. As luck would have it this year, all four sets actually lit on the first try. With the added glee from not having to find the bad bulb in a string of 400 lights, I then moved on to the lawn ornaments. This year I finally bought the two lit wicker reindeer and one lit wicker snowman that we have been wanting for a long time. I couldn't wait to get them up. Unpacking them was a feat in itself, but after unpacking and assembling the first one, I thought I had it figured out and moved on to the next. After a little struggle with the legs on that deer, I finally got it staked into the ground. Everyting was coming together nicely.
As daylight dwindled, I called my hubby up from his project in the basement to help with coordinating all the extension cords, timer, and circuits. Everything was fine until I went to clean up the boxes, scissors, and cable ties from the front yard. While simply walking, just walking - with one foot in front of the other - I somehow mis-stepped and twisted my ankle outward so hard that I heard a crack and went tumbling to the ground. My foot had turned under, spinning me around backwards and landing me flat on my back in the front yard. Searing pain immediately coursed through my ankle. My husband, having also heard the crack in my bone from his position on the front stoop, rushed to my side and I told him I thought my ankle was broken. After he helped me up and got me to the sidewalk, I tried walking on it but quickly discovered that was not going to happen. I had been hoping that it was just a bad sprain, but when I couldn't walk on it and a large egg started to appear where my ankle bone used to be, we knew a trip to the ER was imminent.
The neighborhood kids had witnessed my graceful sprawl to the ground and ran to tell their parents. Thanks goodness for great neighbors, who immediately offered to take our children and watch them and feed them dinner while my husband and I made our way to the ER. At the hospital, the nurse asked if I broke my ankle putting up Christmas lights... apparently she sees enough of this sort of accident during the holiday season to assume. I told her yes, though she thought I fell from a ladder or rooftop trying to put lights on the house. I was almost embarrassed to say that I was already on the ground and walking on a relatively flat surface when I did this. I should have told her I was sky-diving that day and had a rough landing or fell from a tree after trying to rescue a kitten. At least then I would have sounded adventurous or heroic instead of just clumsy! I was even more embarrassed when the nurse remembered me from crushing both wrists last year. (Even more embarrassing!) Several hours later, I returned home with painkillers and a large plaster splint around my leg from my toes almost to my knee.
This accident, unfortunately seems to be part of our family traditions with me. Every autumn for the past four years, I have managed to land myself in the hospital for one thing or another. I have even made two birthday parties more interesting with injuries. For 36 years I managed to walk the earth with nary a broken bone. I guess it was bound to catch up with me. But given the last four years, even my children are suggesting I wear bubble wrap as part of my every day ensemble! Last year I crushed both wrists at my oldest daughter's birthday party. It had been one month after having my cancerous thyroid removed, I decided it was time for a little fun to lighten my mood. So for the first time in my life, I donned a pair of roller skates at the skating rink during Jessica's 12th birthday party. All went well until it was time to eat. I managed to exit the rink gracefully and was feeling quite proud of my accomplishment. But as I walked on my skates across the carpet to the party area, one wheeled foot got ahead of me, sending me into a backward fall. Being that I had had two back surgeries for a ruptured disc and pinched nerves, my first thought as I started to go down was to protect my back. So, I threw my arms down to break my fall and immediately regretted the decision when I heard and felt them break. Maybe I should start skipping the holidays - or autumn in general for that matter.
This latest tradition of broken bones and surgeries I can live without. But, even in these difficult times, I will be able to look back and remember how I was able to come through those tough times and still manage to celebrate the season and give thanks to all the things we do have - not just material things, but a happy family, healthy children, and good friends. The difficult moments will be a speck on the map of our family's history and they also remind me that I have an inner strength that I forget about sometimes. It goes with my belief that everything does happen for a reason. Sometimes we have to live through the bad to appreciate the good... an example I hope I am setting for my children by mustering up enough effort to keep things as normal as possible.
Now, before I start the celebrating can I add bubble wrap to my Christmas gifts wish list? Or maybe a large hazard sign to warn others approaching me that I am a walking disaster! I think they should be the new mainstay in my wardrobe!
As daylight dwindled, I called my hubby up from his project in the basement to help with coordinating all the extension cords, timer, and circuits. Everything was fine until I went to clean up the boxes, scissors, and cable ties from the front yard. While simply walking, just walking - with one foot in front of the other - I somehow mis-stepped and twisted my ankle outward so hard that I heard a crack and went tumbling to the ground. My foot had turned under, spinning me around backwards and landing me flat on my back in the front yard. Searing pain immediately coursed through my ankle. My husband, having also heard the crack in my bone from his position on the front stoop, rushed to my side and I told him I thought my ankle was broken. After he helped me up and got me to the sidewalk, I tried walking on it but quickly discovered that was not going to happen. I had been hoping that it was just a bad sprain, but when I couldn't walk on it and a large egg started to appear where my ankle bone used to be, we knew a trip to the ER was imminent.
The neighborhood kids had witnessed my graceful sprawl to the ground and ran to tell their parents. Thanks goodness for great neighbors, who immediately offered to take our children and watch them and feed them dinner while my husband and I made our way to the ER. At the hospital, the nurse asked if I broke my ankle putting up Christmas lights... apparently she sees enough of this sort of accident during the holiday season to assume. I told her yes, though she thought I fell from a ladder or rooftop trying to put lights on the house. I was almost embarrassed to say that I was already on the ground and walking on a relatively flat surface when I did this. I should have told her I was sky-diving that day and had a rough landing or fell from a tree after trying to rescue a kitten. At least then I would have sounded adventurous or heroic instead of just clumsy! I was even more embarrassed when the nurse remembered me from crushing both wrists last year. (Even more embarrassing!) Several hours later, I returned home with painkillers and a large plaster splint around my leg from my toes almost to my knee.
This accident, unfortunately seems to be part of our family traditions with me. Every autumn for the past four years, I have managed to land myself in the hospital for one thing or another. I have even made two birthday parties more interesting with injuries. For 36 years I managed to walk the earth with nary a broken bone. I guess it was bound to catch up with me. But given the last four years, even my children are suggesting I wear bubble wrap as part of my every day ensemble! Last year I crushed both wrists at my oldest daughter's birthday party. It had been one month after having my cancerous thyroid removed, I decided it was time for a little fun to lighten my mood. So for the first time in my life, I donned a pair of roller skates at the skating rink during Jessica's 12th birthday party. All went well until it was time to eat. I managed to exit the rink gracefully and was feeling quite proud of my accomplishment. But as I walked on my skates across the carpet to the party area, one wheeled foot got ahead of me, sending me into a backward fall. Being that I had had two back surgeries for a ruptured disc and pinched nerves, my first thought as I started to go down was to protect my back. So, I threw my arms down to break my fall and immediately regretted the decision when I heard and felt them break. Maybe I should start skipping the holidays - or autumn in general for that matter.
This latest tradition of broken bones and surgeries I can live without. But, even in these difficult times, I will be able to look back and remember how I was able to come through those tough times and still manage to celebrate the season and give thanks to all the things we do have - not just material things, but a happy family, healthy children, and good friends. The difficult moments will be a speck on the map of our family's history and they also remind me that I have an inner strength that I forget about sometimes. It goes with my belief that everything does happen for a reason. Sometimes we have to live through the bad to appreciate the good... an example I hope I am setting for my children by mustering up enough effort to keep things as normal as possible.
Now, before I start the celebrating can I add bubble wrap to my Christmas gifts wish list? Or maybe a large hazard sign to warn others approaching me that I am a walking disaster! I think they should be the new mainstay in my wardrobe!
