Skip to main content

Who Knew?


The Saugatuck Football Team had a dream season - the post-season was nearly as long as the regular season. The team had their fair share of injuries(if injuries to high school boys can be called fair?). But thankfully none to Matthew - who played in some injury-prone positions including center, tackle (or was it guard?) linebacker and other line positions where they are front and center to the other team's line and in constant danger of getting splayed.

But no - Matthew did not sustain any injuries in football season. No, he waited until off-season baseball practice in the gym to sustain an injury worthy of a visit to the ER. And it wasn't caused by some bruiser lineman or even another player or bat - it's cause was a baseball to the face. As John said when he came into the ER, "Next time use your mitt!" One CT scan, four stitches, two vicodin and a shot or two of lidocaine and we were on our way.

And then just a couple days ago, Matthew shared with me the stat that more athletes are injured playing baseball than football! My initial thought was that I've been worrying about the wrong sport!! Next time he goes out onto the football field this football mom can relax and put her worries away. But it sure brings a different perspective to this baseball mom - heck I can no longer sit and chat with my friends while 'watching' a game. Now, I have to watch and worry!!!

I am seriously thinking of getting Matthew one of those Hannibal Lector masks to protect his handsome face during this dangerous baseball season. Wonder if he'd wear it?

Comments

It's not a popularity contest, but ...

Don't cry for me ...

Song lyrics or titles run through my mind to often sum up a situation or add humor to one. Today, it's "Don't Cry for Me Argentina". Only today the title is "Don't cry for me anybody"! I mean, I get it, that people feel bad that I've got breast cancer and that I've been living with MS for nearly 27 years. And I've had other issues that I've blogged about related to #metoo. I get that it seems like a lot looking in from the outside. I hear your comments and appreciate your support. But here's the thing, it doesn't feel overwhelming to me, looking out from the inside. Know what I mean? I live the life that I've been dealt and do it with the personality and faith I've been given. Which means, I could do one of the following: A. Have a miserable, pity-me attitude that would lead to being  miserable; B. Lean into my troubles and seek answers constantly either through research or angrily with God, which would lea...

Navigating the world while four-wheeling

Rain, rain, go away. Don't come back another day. My hair is frizzy. Barometric pressure makes me dizzy. If I go out, wet I'll be. No umbrella hand free to protect me. I'm no Longfellow! And I don't think I'd win a poetry slam, but you get the idea. Rainy days, even when they're not Mondays, get me down. Because when you're navigating the world while four-wheeling, rain presents additional challenges. Last week, for example, the wind was blowing hard enough to blow my wheelchair seat cushion off my car where I'd placed it while removing my chair. It landed in a puddle, upside down, and rested there long enough that the absorbent material in the comfy cushion absorbed quite a bit of water. I may have let an expletive fly, because a store clerk who was standing up against the window under the protective eave, smoking a cigarette and looking at her phone, actually looked up. She didn't come to my aid, but she looked up. Thankful...

Silenced

In April of 2010, I witnessed firsthand the pain and sorrow that comes with losing your voice. John had been in treatment for throat cancer for about a month and the radiation treatment burned his mouth and throat gradually making it more and more painful to talk. As we'd been married for 22 years, we could could communicate most things by gestures and looks (all you long-married couples know what I'm talking about!). But on Easter Sunday, when the congregation stood and began to sing     , John was silent. I sang the first verse along with the congregation, but the knowledge of why John was not singing, that he was silenced, hit me like a tsunami and I began to struggle to hold back the tears on what was supposed to be a joyful Christian celebration. Cancer had rendered by husband's voice mute. Since November, I too have been struggling to find my voice. My written voice. The sometimes funny, sometimes insightful, almost-always positive voice that I've used in thi...