Definitely Not a Spring Chicken

Have I ever told the story about the time I cracked my head on the sidewalk in San Gabriel? I was about 5 as I recall. I was walking backward, talking to Janice and Joyce, sisters that my parents were fostering at the time. My white dog, Sissy, got tangled up in my feet and I went over backward. My head bounced on the sidewalk a couple of times and I ended up with a very sore bump about the size of a goose egg. It hurt like crazy and I got a lot of sympathy from the folks at church the next Sunday. Those were the days when you didn't go to the doctor for a minor thing like a concussion.

I flashed back to that incident tonight while I was trailing along behind the dogs, who love to zip back and forth to sniff each mailbox that we pass. I just know that one of these days they will succeed in tripping me up with their leash and I'm going to go down on the pavement and crack my head again. I was really concerned it might be tonight, because I am really in bad shape at the moment and probably could not make the necessary adjustments to stay on my feet.

The entire right side of my body is screaming at me. In an abortive attempt to keep Mother from falling on Saturday, I managed to wrench my shoulder. The muscles are sore from the middle of my back down to my right hip. I realized tonight that I also undid all the good the chiropractor has done for my right thumb and it is feeling decidedly dislocated again.

Today has been an exercise in groans. It hurt to pick up my briefcase and put it in the car. It hurt worse to take it out of the car. Every door at the office is on a heavy hinge and invariably I would try to open them with my right hand, only to have my shoulder remind me it did not want to do that right now. Even sitting still doesn't work, because after awhile the shoulder muscles begin to cramp. It did not take folks around me long to realize the old lady was in pain. It got a few doors opened for me and a box carried inside from my car. Might as well enjoy the considerations when I have a good excuse.

I'm fairly sure it's just sore muscles and no real damage was done, but when you are my age sore muscles can pretty darned disabling. The dogs are puzzled why our walks have been dramatically shorter the last few days. Mom is getting a good reminder that she just ain't a kid no more.

LSW