Remembering the Falls

Looking over the past year, the most prevalent activity in the Thompson household was falling. Dean got the ball rolling the summer of 2011 when he fell on a curb and fractured his foot in three places. A few months later he stubbed and broke his little toe, on the other foot. Then he fell and cracked a rib. Another time he cut his knee up pretty bad, when he tripped and fell. And those were only the falls that produced injuries!

I made my contribution when I fell last spring and fractured my foot. I'll never forget the terrifying feeling of wondering who would take care of BOTH of us. When they showed me the "walking boot" I was to wear, I really shuddered. I had to help Dean put his on for months. There was no way he could return the favor. It was such a relief to find I could do it myself.

The hard part for me was using the walker and not putting pressure on the fractured foot, which translated to hopping everywhere I went. I would be short of breath after each hop. It was slow going, and miserable for my poor lungs, but I survived.

I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that, whatever it is, there is a God who will see us through. Just as He has this past year. We will survive all our falls, and God will take care of both of us.

New Year...bring it on!

Another Foot Injury

Last night I managed to get a rather long glass shard stuck in the bottom of my foot. It came out easy enough, bled for a bit, but despite all my first aid cleansing and bandaging, hurts pretty bad every time I take a step today. I have to walk on the heel of my foot, so once again I find myself hobbling around the house--reminiscent of last spring's foot fracture fiasco.

I've tried to use my injury as an excuse to get Dean out of his chair more often today, telling him he should be waiting on me, instead of the other way around. But it's a lost cause. He's staying pretty immobile these days, either in bed or in his recliner, except for the two days he goes to his adult day program or the few times I take him to the library, the bread store, our monthly support group, or our weekly Bible study.

So at least for today, Dean and I are both trying to stay in a reclining position. But he has obviously found more success than I have. He's had more practice.

Practice does seem to lead to more success. Even in our spiritual lives. The more I do to feed my faith, the stronger I feel in my Christian walk. Use it or lose it, as the exercise buffs tell us. Bible study, prayer, and witnessing are exercise for the soul.

Hopefully tomorrow my foot will also enable me to just walk around the house without pain. My whole body does feel better with exercise. And so does my soul.

Getting a Lift

I was wondering what the physical therapist would be recommending for Dean today. Last year when he was here he didn't get much accomplished because of Dean's foot fracture.

After he went through some exercises with him today, I began telling him of Dean's lack of activity and how I end up waiting on him, probably too much. But when I said it was mostly because it was so hard for Dean to get out of his recliner these days, he said he might qualify for a lift chair.

That would really be nice. Hopefully it would mean that he would get up more often, which would be good for him. And it would be less wear and tear on my old body by grabbing his hand and pulling him up all the time, or just waiting on him hand and foot. So it would be good for me too.

God can grab our hand too to help us up. Or He can give us a "lift chair" to help us up. Even though it feels like we are getting up on our own, God is still doing the work. Let's not forget the source of all our efforts and activities. Whether we are pulled from the front or pushed from the back, God is doing the pushing and pulling. It is God, all the way.

Healer of Body and Soul

Finally I get something to help with the inflammation of my foot from the injury almost three months ago. Just a topical gel, but I hope it does the trick. The foot is still puffy and hurts after all this time. The bone has healed nicely they say, but I suppose there's more to a foot than bone.

This leads me to a paradox I've been thinking about for a few days. When your life gets messed up, just like my foot did, what part do you work on first? The outward behaviors, the addictions and displays of anger and depression, or the inward stress, unforgiving spirit, and heartache that eat away at our inner peace and happiness?

It almost seems to me that both have to find relief. And the only way that can be done is to turn it all over to the one who specializes in all the parts that make us who we are. That would be God. The Healer of Body AND Soul. He not only takes away our symptoms, but He cures the disease that gave us those symptoms.

We need doctors. We need pastors. But most of all, we need a Savior. And we must give Him everything, all the parts of us, or else it's all a waste.

Busy Weeks

Each week since my foot injury seems to be busier than the one before. If I never have to go to another doctor's appointment or see another home health nurse, it will not be too soon. This week I'm not only caregiving for my husband, who cracked his ribs last week when he fell in the house, but now the dog is added to my list of needy family members, since I just brought her home from the vet's today after her spaying surgery.

Don't get me wrong. I'm just reporting, not complaining. I thrive on staying busy, and it is especially sweet that I'm staying busy for others. There are many theories on how to stay young, but to me the most powerful one is to keep your youth by caring for others.

Well, maybe it won't keep you young, but it will keep you alive. I'm counting on God to keep me around as long as I can be of use to somebody. There's really no reason to hang around this old earth any longer than that. Right? Heaven's too good to postpone.