I've been home from Stockton a week and a half now. It's been an interesting week, with many ups and downs and even a few sideways moves. I've been doing a lot of talking about my accident, mostly with friends and co-workers. Although I knew that God had blessed me when I broke my arms (yes, it's okay if you think I'm strange) I did not quite realize that he used my broken arms to bless others. But He did and others shared that with me.
First of all, a really big praise that came out of this whole episode is the the door of communication has opened between Megan and I. The day I got home from the hospital she brought me a cards and flowers. We talked on the phone a few times while I was in Stockton and we have texted back and forth a few times. I feel as if it is still pretty tentative but its a step in the right direction! As I told a friend this evening, that alone was worth the price of breaking my arm!
What else? Well, if you read about my accident you know I was pretty excited no one ran over me as I lay across the middle of the bike path. That was the Lord's protection and provision for sure. The fact that Jen was home and able to bring me ice and take my bike for safe-keeping, that was another blessing. That my son was concerned enough to get off work early to come to the emergency room touched my heart. I'll take that as a blessing. My parents care for me, from Tuesday morning when they took me to my doctor's appointment all the way through last week while I stayed with them and they fed me and cared for me and drove me all over the countryside getting the care I needed. That was a huge blessing for me. In turn I was happy I was there to walk with Jeffrey on days he wanted company and it was too warm for my mom to walk. I was also happy I was there for emotional support for my mom when her sister became ill and my mom was fearing she would die. I believe that time with my parents allowed us to grow closer and appreciate new things about each other.
In the hospital, both the ER and in Kaiser for the surgery, I was very concious of the fact that I was very "out there" about being a Christian. I knew that I needed to exempify Christian behavior for everyone I came in contact with. I did my best to remain cheerful and pleasant and not be grumpy with anyone. I believe I did a good job. I know that was all with the strength that God provided me.
While all this was going on my boss, Sandy, was experiencing a few blessings of her own. When I first had my accident the woman who is my back up at work, Maria, was in the Phillipines. Since Sandy was covering Maria's desk the senior accountant, Brett, covered mine. Once Maria returned Sandy covered my desk while Maria got hers caught. Then another co-worker, Mattese, took two weeks off to get married. Sandy covered her desk. In the end, Sandy spent time on every desk in the department, learning each one thoroughly. She told me that was a blessing for her.
Our God is faithful, He is merciful and He is just. I'm sure the lessons from the last two months have not ended and I am looking forward to experiencing them in the future.
I went back to Lakeside tonight for the first time in over two months. The worship was awesome and Brad's message was brilliant! I have much to think about and an email I would like to write to Brad.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Broken! (Seriously!!!)
So my last post was April 30th and this is almost 3 months later. You probably want to know where I've been. That's a fair question. And I believe I have a really good answer.
I may have mentioned before that I was planning on riding in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure on May 1st. I did that. I rode 50K and raised $670.00 for the ADA. It was fun. My teammates got delayed so I rode on my own (in the middle of a large pack of bicyclists). It was a nice sunny day and at the end of the race I got a free burrito from Chipotle. After the ride I called my mom and told her that I signed the banner at the end of the ride and wrote that I was riding in honor of her and Jeffrey. I didn't mean to but I think I made her cry.
The ride was Saturday. On Sunday my new friend LeAnn was baptised so I went to the all church barbeque, picnic and baptism celebration out at Folsom Lake. I took a daffodil cake and had another good time. I got a little sunburned but not too badly.
The next few weeks flew by. I can't really remember what I did with all that time, I know I wasn't riding much because part of that time it was raining. Lanie and Maria, two of my co-workers, took back to back vacations to the Phillipines. It was pretty busy at work. We were studying the Sermon on the Mount in small group and Brad was preaching from the Sermon on the weekends at church. I donated platelets on the 8th and 22nd per my usual schedule and did Connect One on the 15th. Pretty standard stuff.
The morning of Sunday, May 23rd dawned bright and clear. I was pretty happy because there had not been too many nice days lately to ride (weather-wise and busyness-wise) and I had set aside that day for a nice long ride. I got up, put on my bicycle clothes and hit the trail.
The trail was pretty crowded that day but not overly so. i was cruising along at a pretty good speed (about 15 - 18 mph) and really enjoying myself. I decided to set myself a goal of 50 miles and was looking forward to some serious exercise. Just past the 3-1/2 mile point I was distracted by a noise off the side of the road. Next thing I remember I was sprawled across the bike path. Looking at my right wrist there was no doubt it was broken. Lucky for me, the trail that had been jam packed just minutes prior was clear. No one ran over me as I assessed my situation and allowed myself a moment to scream in pain.
A note here about God's perfect timing... the day before in the worship service Gabriel spoke about our reliance on Advil and other drugs for our aches and pains. He reminded us that we should be looking to the Great Physician first for healing. So as I was still laying there in the middle of the bike path I lifted a prayer up to Jesus for my arm.
Next I sat up. Just because there was a break in traffic did not mean that it was okay for me to continue to lay in the road. I gingerly sat up and as I did a small group of cyclists rode up and asked me if I was okay. They dialed 911 for me and I called Jennifer and had her bring me a baggie of ice and collect my bike to take it off the bike path. I was headed to the ER.
The paramedics took me to Mercy hospital. There the doctors X-rayed my right wrist and determined it was broken in two places. They did what they called a reduction, splinted it and told me to call my primary care physician because my arm would need surgery to be set correctly. They sent me home with a prescription for pain killers and told me to elevate my arm.
At Kaiser on Tuesday it was determined that not only had I broken my right wrist in 2 places but I had also fractured my left elbow. Fortunately the fracture was not displaced so the doctor decided not to cast or splint it. That gave me the ability to provide some care for myself. I just wasn't supposed to push, pull or lift anything heavy with that arm. I was also told not to drive for 7 weeks and that I would be off work for 2 months. I had surgery later that evening to set my wrist and insert 2 plates and several screws. I guess I will set off metal detectors at the airport now.
So I have been spending the past 2 months at my parents' house, recuperating. I was feeling pretty helpless as there was not much I could do for myself. I was able to mostly dress myself and take care of my basic personal hygiene but there was a lot I could not do: I couldn't tie my own shoes, I couldn't open doors (cars, refrigerators, etc.), I couldn't cut my food, and I had to write left-handed (which was barely legible). Talk about a lesson in humilty. I slept in the recliner for the first month and on the roll-away bed for the second. It was an experience, one God apparently felt I needed.
So, a lot of stuff has come out of this. Obviously I had a lot of time to think and read and rest. Some of that I will be sharing, some I won't. I still have more processing to do on some of it.
Till later...
I may have mentioned before that I was planning on riding in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure on May 1st. I did that. I rode 50K and raised $670.00 for the ADA. It was fun. My teammates got delayed so I rode on my own (in the middle of a large pack of bicyclists). It was a nice sunny day and at the end of the race I got a free burrito from Chipotle. After the ride I called my mom and told her that I signed the banner at the end of the ride and wrote that I was riding in honor of her and Jeffrey. I didn't mean to but I think I made her cry.
The ride was Saturday. On Sunday my new friend LeAnn was baptised so I went to the all church barbeque, picnic and baptism celebration out at Folsom Lake. I took a daffodil cake and had another good time. I got a little sunburned but not too badly.
The next few weeks flew by. I can't really remember what I did with all that time, I know I wasn't riding much because part of that time it was raining. Lanie and Maria, two of my co-workers, took back to back vacations to the Phillipines. It was pretty busy at work. We were studying the Sermon on the Mount in small group and Brad was preaching from the Sermon on the weekends at church. I donated platelets on the 8th and 22nd per my usual schedule and did Connect One on the 15th. Pretty standard stuff.
The morning of Sunday, May 23rd dawned bright and clear. I was pretty happy because there had not been too many nice days lately to ride (weather-wise and busyness-wise) and I had set aside that day for a nice long ride. I got up, put on my bicycle clothes and hit the trail.
The trail was pretty crowded that day but not overly so. i was cruising along at a pretty good speed (about 15 - 18 mph) and really enjoying myself. I decided to set myself a goal of 50 miles and was looking forward to some serious exercise. Just past the 3-1/2 mile point I was distracted by a noise off the side of the road. Next thing I remember I was sprawled across the bike path. Looking at my right wrist there was no doubt it was broken. Lucky for me, the trail that had been jam packed just minutes prior was clear. No one ran over me as I assessed my situation and allowed myself a moment to scream in pain.
A note here about God's perfect timing... the day before in the worship service Gabriel spoke about our reliance on Advil and other drugs for our aches and pains. He reminded us that we should be looking to the Great Physician first for healing. So as I was still laying there in the middle of the bike path I lifted a prayer up to Jesus for my arm.
Next I sat up. Just because there was a break in traffic did not mean that it was okay for me to continue to lay in the road. I gingerly sat up and as I did a small group of cyclists rode up and asked me if I was okay. They dialed 911 for me and I called Jennifer and had her bring me a baggie of ice and collect my bike to take it off the bike path. I was headed to the ER.
The paramedics took me to Mercy hospital. There the doctors X-rayed my right wrist and determined it was broken in two places. They did what they called a reduction, splinted it and told me to call my primary care physician because my arm would need surgery to be set correctly. They sent me home with a prescription for pain killers and told me to elevate my arm.
At Kaiser on Tuesday it was determined that not only had I broken my right wrist in 2 places but I had also fractured my left elbow. Fortunately the fracture was not displaced so the doctor decided not to cast or splint it. That gave me the ability to provide some care for myself. I just wasn't supposed to push, pull or lift anything heavy with that arm. I was also told not to drive for 7 weeks and that I would be off work for 2 months. I had surgery later that evening to set my wrist and insert 2 plates and several screws. I guess I will set off metal detectors at the airport now.
So I have been spending the past 2 months at my parents' house, recuperating. I was feeling pretty helpless as there was not much I could do for myself. I was able to mostly dress myself and take care of my basic personal hygiene but there was a lot I could not do: I couldn't tie my own shoes, I couldn't open doors (cars, refrigerators, etc.), I couldn't cut my food, and I had to write left-handed (which was barely legible). Talk about a lesson in humilty. I slept in the recliner for the first month and on the roll-away bed for the second. It was an experience, one God apparently felt I needed.
So, a lot of stuff has come out of this. Obviously I had a lot of time to think and read and rest. Some of that I will be sharing, some I won't. I still have more processing to do on some of it.
Till later...
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