I suppose over my many years I must have used many a crutch to help me along the road, but I've never needed the medical variety until earlier this week.
Not only crutches, but a hot and sweaty moonboot too. It's a whole new world! A very much slower one, a deliberate planning of out how to get here, how to get there. How long it takes to get to the kitchen to make a cup of tea and bring the steaming liquid back via furniture stops. I stand still, let go of the crutches, move mug from one surface to the next within arm range. Back on the crutches, move to the middle of the next two posts, lay aside crutches, move mug to new position, and so on and so on until finally I sit with a huge sigh and wonder if the trek was worth it!
Tim and I were taking our usual hike in Newlands Forest last Sunday. We'd walked along the 300 metre contour path and had just begun the descent to the woodcutter's trail. I love this path. It's not all that well known, narrow and twisty and rocky and somewhat overgrown and I immediately started slowly jogging with a sigh of immense pleasure, remembering discovering the route back in the nineties when I had three Jack Russell terriers in tow.
A large black insect with long trailing legs flew across my path forcing me to duck and take my eye off the path. Searing pain dropped me to the ground with immediate huge swelling - it didn't feel or look good!
We met five wonderful women who helped strap my ankle and stayed close by me as I slid downhill on my behind, or hopped along, supported by small tree trunks and a borrowed walking stick. Finally we reached the forestry road where a National Parks worker fetched me in his truck and took us home and I could shower and ice and ice.
Monday's visit to a physiotherapist concluded I needed an x-ray and the report of that indicated a small bone fragment torn off the outside ankle bone. Tuesday then saw me strapped into the moon boot, needing crutches too, for at least a week. Then one to two weeks of moon boot alone.
These past few days have been hot and humid. But it could be worse!
As I mentioned earlier, life has slowed down a bunch. Maybe it's time to get some of my projects finished?
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