It’s amazing the way people rally around individuals in crisis. I saw it when I woke up from surgery over a year ago, and the city of Portland is witnessing it now after Wesley Matthews ruptured his Achilles tendon. Several days after, he posted a really honest reflection on his facebook that I really resonate with. He wrote “none of it felt real, and to be honest, it still doesn’t.” Sometimes I feel that way over a year later. I still have mornings where I wake up and expect to be able to move my legs normally. It hasn’t happened yet. They’re still stiff and spasing on me. I still have to set an extra alarm to take the muscle relaxants an hour before I get out of bed.
I also resonate with Wes at how encouraging it is to see hundreds if not thousands of people sending me their love and support. #WithWes shows all the people lamenting his injury and hoping for a swift recovery. I’m not a famous basketball star, but I’ve had countless people send me encouraging comments and continue to pray for me. I hope you’ll keep sending them – or even sending more emails in response to the Rip City post linked to the left. I’m so grateful for that. It really helps to know that people are still praying for me when I have that first alarm telling me to take the drugs that will settle down the annoying shaking in my legs. It’s a huge encouragement when people stop me in town to tell me they are still praying for me. It’s a blessing when people at church ask me about my progresses each week.
The final statement that stuck out to me from Wes’s post was that his injury was “a challenge that will be nothing but another chapter in my story.” He’s out for the season, and it’s a huge hit to his career. I was out for a semester, and it was devastating to me to miss out on teaching my kids every day last spring. However, that time in REHAB was a chapter in my story. This continued recovery is a different chapter, but my life isn’t over because my legs don’t work right anymore.
This current chapter of my live still involves a lot of therapy, a lot of hard work, and the blessing of teaching my students two hours a day. It’s an exciting chapter, different than any I’d ever though I’d live. I’m grateful for it, but I’m also realistic about the difficulties. It still takes a lot of effort to make it through each day with all the required stretching and moving and lesson planning necessary. I’m seeing small increases in stamina, but I’d like to have a lot more (as always).
Thanks for still asking with me – for stamina, for strength, for nerve growth, and for muscle function.
