So, it’s been an interesting week. Following our canoeing adventures, we were settling back into our normal routines, including getting back to my morning runs. Several days into it, everything was great. Everything felt good,  was getting comfortable with longer distances, even the heat felt manageable. Ok, that should have been a sign I needed to worry.

Cue ominous music here.

Last Thursday morning, two miles into a run with #2 son, we were hashing out the plot for book #3 of the new series and my foot hit the edge of the pavement. Recent flooding had washed the ground away from the trails edge. My ankle went one way and I went the other.

From my end, it felt a bit slow motion. Like I should have been able to recover and stay upright. But I didn’t.

I bounced.

Several times.

Ouch.

Poor kiddo with me—ok, not a kid, he’s 21 and getting ready for grad school—the look on his face! Not one I want to put there again.

After a few minutes, he helped me up and we assessed the damage.

• Blood—check, running down the leg from a suitably dramatic torn up knee.

• Bruising—check, multiple places from some good bounces.

• Broken—no, looks like I avoided that one, ankle sprained for sure, but not broken. Happy to avoid checking that off the list.

So now, we’re ¾ of a mile from home and need to get back. Fun times.

I think everyone in the neighborhood came out to gawk at the clumsy lady, hobbling home on cute, sweaty young man’s arm. And all the dogs.

Every freaking dog in the neighborhood came up to say hi. Half of them wanted to lick my knee. Don’t know if it was compassion or smelling weakness and an easy meal.

Naturally it was right then that the ocular migraine chooses to strike and not only cannot I not walk properly, I’m bleeding enough to draw in predators, but I now I can’t see.

Just shoot me now.

Obviously we made it home for lots of RICE. Rest. Ice. Compression (and Crutches).  Elevation.

Thankfully it looks like just a grade 1 sprain and I’m trying to be a good girl so that it heals properly and I don’t make this a repeat performance. (My son assures me the fall was only an 8 out of 10 and that I’ll never achieve a true 10, so don’t bother trying.)

In the process though, I have made a few observations.

• There’s a lot more junk on my floor at home than I realized—a great deal more

• Crutches make the dog want to go out twice as often as usual

• Crutches are a great upper body workout

• The grocery store is A LOT bigger than I remember it being

• When you’re on crutches EVERYONE wants to tell you about the time they were on crutches, too

• There’s nothing so beautiful as a helping hand

I want to camp on that last one for a minute.

I think all of us like to be pretty self-reliant and independent, but sometimes there are things we just can’t do for ourselves.  And it drives us crazy. Ok, it drives me crazy.  I’m like the worst about asking for someone to help me and my poor family knows it.   

They have been awesome though, from my 9 months pregnant daughter in law who made us dinner, to my sons who have been driving me around, letting the dog in and out, and fetching and carrying for me, and my ever patient husband helps me know my limits.

Sometimes it is easy to forget how much the people around us care about us and for us. I’d love to be reminded in a slightly less colorful way next time, but I’m glad for the reminder nonetheless.

Have you ever gotten a colorful reminder about the helping hands around you?