Yesterday was just another Wednesday as I was putting out the garbage and recyclables until……
Those who know me well have often heard me say that you need a sense of humor, and a great deal of faith, to get through this journey. Well yesterday both were called into play. As I was putting out the barrels before going to the gym, I slipped on a pile of rocks near the street. As I fell (or gracefully slid down as I prefer to think of it.) my legs went out from under me and I landed on my left side.
Here I was, laying on the ground being practical and giving my body a chance to stop reverberating from the shock before I attempted to get up when I saw an elderly couple coming up the slight hill. The husband yells “Are you Ok?” As he walks toward me he yells again, “I can’t walk fast I just had my hip replaced.” I said “It’s OK I’m not going anywhere.” He arrives with his wife who is on a cane and says ”Can we help?” I kept thinking of those commercials (Help, I can’t get up!) while I was also thinking, ”I am 35, I am 35, I am 35 (so not true) Oh Lordy tell me this is not about age but lack of coordination.”
Then with how my mind works it just strikes me that this is just too comical. Here we are a small group of wonderful, thoughtful, people all in the same shape trying to help each other along. I didn’t want her to help me since she was resting on her cane just to walk and I didn’t want to hurt her in any way. He did help me up and I somehow got into the house and waited on the couch to see if it would all subside with an ice treatment and some energy work but since after a few hours it was still the same I decided to try calling around for friends. I realized then that I did not have my neighbor’s number. That will be remedied…. I called a dear friend, Denise, who was home sick, and who nonetheless came and took me to the ER.
I learned that I sprained my ankle, something I haven’t done since my days of roller skating on the streets in Southie. At that time it really was just another day – I got hurt often since I could jump the fences better than any boy in the crowd but the landing wasn’t always on level ground. I still have a long scar on my leg from playing chicken and winning because most others always backed down but one time some not-too-bright kid, who was just as much a daredevil as I, didn’t and the bike brakes went through my leg as we crashed into each other. (I wasn’t always this smart you know. Dr. Dorothy came much, much, later….)
In any event, after leaving the clinic yesterday and then sitting on the couch yet again, with my air cast on and my crutches next to me, I wondered, how many of us are blessed to have others in their lives who they can call at a moment’s notice? How many have developed the friendships we all need in life to walk this journey knowing we can always reach out.
Even simply a neighbor, who may be at another stage of life, can be a great gift in your life. One day this past weekend, my neighbor next door (and I have only lived here 3 months) again insisted she is there for sugar, milk, or whatever I need because she loves the idea of a neighborhood. How many of you would utilize that? Her husband thoughtfully came to cut down a branch that had broken; I made brownies and gave most to her and her family (keeping one for myself since I love those things). These folks are the gifts that fill our life, and in these days of such political extremism in this country, what makes our lives and our country strong, is the connection of those real people who reach out and those who are willing to reach back.
I wish for all of you those neighbors and friends who want to reach out, who want to be there for you. Even if it is hard, learning to receive and to give is such a gift of connection it feeds our soul. You deserve it. Know that others want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, even as you do.
