Jesusluvsall's Blog

I have lived through so many Nebraska winters that I don’t want to confess how many. 🙂 I am a seasoned veteran of winter and all it entails, snow, ice, blizzards, freezing rain etc. I have shoveled snow so many times that I can’t remember them all. When I was a kid, school getting canceled because of snow meant I could stay home and play. Now that I am a teacher, it means I can stay home and relax. I know how to handle snowy icy conditions.

Wednesday I went to my church to meet with a student from Brazil. I parked on the side of the building where I always park since it is closest to the room I use for teaching. The door was locked, so I walked around the building to get in the other door. I know how to walk on sidewalks in the winter, but surprise- DOWN I WENT THUD on my right shoulder. I got up and shook it off or so I thought.

I wouldn’t have told anyone. You know the old saying Pride Goes Before the Fall? Well for me Pride Came After the Fall. I didn’t feel any real pain until I got in the classroom and tried to write on the board. As I tried to raise my hand, I couldn’t. My student, Ana, told me I should go to the doctor. I told her maybe I would after we finished not wanting to let on to how much pain I was in. Pain didn’t matter because I had a commitment to my student. After we finished, I drove to the emergency room because it felt like something was broken. I got there and had to sit and wait for about 45 minutes to get into an exam room.

Then the magic moment when my name was called. It was my turn to go back to  an exam room.

As I sat in the exam room waiting, I thought to myself, “Matt you messed up. This is THE Trauma Center for the southern part of the state. You should have gone to one of the other ERs,” I had arrived there at 3:50. I got back to the exam room at maybe 4:45.  Not their fault, They had some major traumas. But I went there without thinking it through because it is closest to where I teach in the evening. I thought go there, get checked over, get what I need, and go teach.

So finally a nurse came in and talked with me. Maybe 20 minute later the doctor came in and ordered the x-rays. I got x-rayed.

Results? Nothing broken and no separation. Soft tissue damage. Wear a sling and take anti-inflammatory meds for a week and then go see my doc unless I need to go sooner.

I have nothing profound to share about the experience. Just a story to tell. I never did teach my class that evening. I called my director from the ER and told her it was taking longer than I thought and she canceled the class and called my students.

There is one thing to share. Moments like this let a person know how many people are in our lives. I posted pictures on my Facebook and Instagram more out of wanting to make humor out of it all, but the expressions of care from friends of different cultures meant a lot.

The nurse expressed surprise that I taught my student before coming in, I told her that when I was in Romania in June 1997 I hurt my foot and there was nowhere to buy crutches. I used a broomstick to help me walk for a few days. She looked surprised there were no crutches. I explained it was post-communist Romania and nothing worked well. I was trying to convey that teaching my student first was no big deal.

So here’s hoping for a less eventful rest of the winter. Happy Friday everyone. Hope you got a smile from my story.

Thank you for reading. God Bless.