Tuesday when just waking in a hotel room in St. Louis, preparing to see interns my phone rang. It was Alex.
Alex: “Mom, first of all, promise you won’t freak out.”
Me: “Okay.”
Alex: “Dad fell off the roof just now.”
Me: “Okay.
Alex: “And we called 911.”
Me: “Okay good.”
Alex: “And they are flying him to Columbia right now.”
Me: “Okay, I’m leaving now. Text me a picture of his insurance card and prescription drug bottle.”
Alex: “Will do. Should I take Adam to football?”
Not exactly the agenda for the day/week/month I was counting on.
My husband broke his back Tuesday. That’s a difficult sentence to type. My husband broke his back Tuesday. HOLY CRAP, MY HUSBAND BROKE HIS BACK TUESDAY!
It’s been a long 72 hours. We’ve been on quite a roller coaster and it seems we have only just begun.
No one really ever explains all that jazz about “for better or worse, in sickness and in health” when you are standing at the altar all fancy in the white gown. Twenty years ago I would not have imagined feeding my 49 year old husband. Sure, maybe at 89 but 49? No. Yet here we are.
We have learned a lot about the spine in the past day. He broke T12 and burst L1.
Currently we are in therapy preschool and desperately trying to get promoted to Kindergarten. Our school looks like this....
I was fully expecting to publish a blog this week about all of our memories in Italy a few weeks ago and then preparing to draft something regarding our Alaskan cruise. Instead, I’m camped out in a hospital room with my husband calling the cruise line trying to postpone a cruise we already paid for. It was actually kind of cute when he looked up from his back brace and asked his neurologist if he could go. We exchanged glances over him and shared a look that we both knew meant we wished we were on the same kind of drugs. Further activity of any kind this summer just ain’t gonna happen.
The short version of this story is that James was roofing one of his rental properties with Alex and one of his friends when he fell off. We keep getting asked if we need to file worker’s comp and we have to laugh because we can’t really sue ourselves. Well I guess we could but we’re broke so thats not an option. There are MANY blessings (miracles really) tucked into this story and we are doing our best to focus on those.
It’s time for some gratitude so after a complete meltdown yesterday, that’s what I’m focusing on. I mean, C’mon, it could always be worse.
We have learned about the spinal column, how to read a spinal x-ray, how to order “room service” in the hospital, how to stay ahead of pain and how to walk again (sort of, not really but kind of).
I am not looking up builders to install a ramp at my house. (Yet)
I am not listing my house for sale because it’s a split foyer and not wheelchair accessible. (Yet)
I have many AWESOME prayer warriors!!
This did not happen 14 days ago in Italy.
Alex was helping James on the roof and HE did not fall off the roof.
Adam was not there to see.
Alex kept his cool, called 911 and did all the right things.
I am not supervising this summer so I have a little time to tend to James at home in the coming many weeks.
He will still be allowed to teach so at least he still has a job.
Between James’ friend and the boys his lawn mowing business will get covered.
We have amazing friends organizing a meal train.
Surgery was not needed so he can go home in a brace. (You know, once his right leg works again)
He can take off the brace to sleep.
His pain has been managed over night and he is no longer screaming in agony and crying.
His good friend came to see him and he was ok enough through “most” of the visit to enjoy it. He also brought me a little dinner. (Shout out to Joe!)
Our good friends Carolyn and George brought James some clothes (His clothes had been cut off)
and the boys stuck James’ turtle from his childhood into the backpack.
Stacey and Tony came to visit and brought us milkshakes, dinner and an awesome care package!
Our friend Don has an empty house in town with air conditioning for me to go if I need to.
I was on the road already so I have plenty of clothes and work items and everything I need to survive and be productive while we are camped out at the hospital.
Eventhough we have to cancel our cruise to Alaska there is a “chance” they will let us swap it for a cruise next year. (Fingers crossed).
We have become experts at rating pain. “On a scale from 0 to kidney stone how badly does it hurt? Or, On a scale of 0 to stepping on a lego barefoot how bad does it hurt?” (We are really good at this)
Finally, the guy from orthotics who brought us the brace only had one leg. When asked what happened to him he told us he lost his leg to osteosarcoma at 10 years old. (Things that make you go hmmmmm, eh Illinois friends?)
There’s more..... Much more to this story but this is all I am up for at the moment. Please keep the prayers coming. We are VERY lucky but we still need them. Goodnight for now from University Hospital, floor 7, room 18.
