WAWOS | A merry mishap

A merry mishap

Posted Dec 25, 2017 by Jacquie Robison

So, this happened.

A week ago, I broke the big toe on my left foot by catching it on the bottom of my yoga pants and yanking it the wrong way. Yep. The bad toe puns and jokes have been pretty relentless since I admitted how this accident went down. Trending in my family: #NamasteOnTheCouch

In the whole scheme of things, wearing a boot for 4-6 weeks is not a big deal. But, it has instructed me in a couple of things I wanted to share.

ON GAINING GROUND

As I hobbled around on the boot, my daughter Sofia giggled and said, "Mom, with that broken toe, I'm faster than you." There was a delight in her voice that was beyond cute. I was reminded how important it is to mark her milestones. She works hard for them and does it with the same joy she expressed at being speedier than me. Any day of the week, I'd break my other big toe to hear that sound.

ON FEELING FRUSTRATED

Visiting family in Utah, I've had to think about how to get around in the snow. It's not just the weather, it's watching out for folks in a hurry and trying to stay out of their way. My frustration at not doing things the way I'm used to is humbling. When I expressed that I was annoyed at not getting things done quickly, Sofia said "I know what will help, it always helps me" and came over to deliver a hug. All the feels right there. She gets it. She can't change that my toe is broken, but she can support me.

ON ASSUMPTIONS

I was getting some errands done with Jeremiah, and several people commented, "Ski injury?" or "You're supposed to do that at the end of the season, not the beginning." I just grinned and nodded, not feeling particularly motivated to correct them! It reminded me of a time a few years ago after Sofia had botox and serial casting on her legs to reduce the spasticity and increase range of motion.

Both her legs were cast in sweet colors from the knee down. A woman approached and said, "Ohhh, poor thing. How did she break her legs?" Before I could reply, Sofia piped up "I didn't break them, I got botox." The look of surprise and disbelief on the woman's face as she processed this information is one I won't forget. After that, when someone would say "Ohhh, two broken legs, what bad luck", I'd just nod my head in agreement. I'm all for education and growing awareness, but you have to choose your battles.

ON SEEING BEYOND THE BOOT

It was Sofia who decided we should borrow a page from our walker capes program and bedazzle my boot. We had a great time searching through our craft box and coming up with a creative plan. Sticking on the little gems and cutting the ribbon to jazz up the straps was fun for us to do together, and it really made it more festive. As I've limped around different places, the jeweled boot has encouraged smiles from people and even made me feel a little less self conscious about it. I'd call that a win.

There you have it. When Christmas delivers a little lump of coal, bling it out and keep your perspective. And your sense of humor! Wishing you all Merry Everything.

This entry was posted in musings and tagged #shine bright