#7 from the jar


Have you ever broken a bone? Tell about it.

the first time i broke a bone
my right wrist when i was 38 years old
skateboarding


a little wet on the pavement from the rain
three weeks after Liz was born
on my way down the street
to see if Cindy could play

i never made it to her house
my wrist looked like a "Z"

trying to catch myself
a tricky turn
  not wanting to rip my new pants
sweetie was out of town
sam (my oldest) 16 years old 
drove me to the hospital
chastising me for riding in the rain
 rolled up magazine supporting my wrist

the Dr. suspended my fingers
Chinese finger trap

after administering pain medicine
with all his weight
he pulled, leaned, tugged

my baby was three weeks old
avoiding surgery
a new baby at home to nurse
seven other children needing their mama

YES! 
all that hanging 
from my arm lined up bones
man oh man did it ever hurt
sweetie chewed me out when he got home
"you're too old to be doing stuff like that"
my dad got after me
"too many are depending on you"

they were right about my many responsibilities
but, i wasn't too old
the skill just wasn't there
...

then when i was 54
i was skiing much too fast
the light was flat
a little icy


i hit an unexpected bump or dip

SPLAT!!
broken right clavicle - close to shoulder


boy oh boy
did that ever hurt

i skied down the hill
sixth child, third son david drove me home

when sweetie got through skiing 
he came home
we went to the hospital
x-rays
sling
pain meds.
i was back in business
sort of

sleeping was miserable

once again speed exceeded my skill

maybe that trip was doomed at the get go
i slid off the road on the way up the mountain
 that great big white suburban
before we ever got there

speed and an icy turn
(seems to be a theme)



...

Comments

Grandma Honey said…
Made me hurt just reading this!
I broke a finger in a car accident when I was 12. And I broke my foot (stress fracture) when I was quilting at church about a year ago.

Those weren't bad breaks like yours!

I thought about going roller blading with my kids years ago. After reading this, I'm glad I didn't :)

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