December 3, 2016. Madison, Mississippi. My Friend Mary,

My friend Mary broke her leg, a compound fracture of her left tibia and fibula.  Not a good break  Of course, no break is a good break but these breaks on load bearing bones are especially difficult.   She is prepared for a long recovery.

She was in the attic retrieving Christmas decorations at their home in Delaware when she stepped in a hole on the attic floor.    Her leg got caught and she lost her balance and fell, which left her leg in the hole.   Mary could see what she had done and immediately called 911 who came promptly.  The big problem was how to get her over to the stairs and then get down the pull up stairs.  They suggested calling a crane to lower her down but she refused.  Instead, the emergency attendant put a balloon cast on her leg.  Then Mary scooted like a crab on her back side and arms and one good leg while the attendant held the broken leg.   She came down the stairs the same way.  Once on the second floor, she had clear sailing as they had a chair that wheeled down the stairs and to the waiting ambulance.

The surgery was done that afternoon and she stayed two days in the hospital.  Now she is home but she may not put any weight on that leg and won't for many weeks.   When I talked to her today she was busy looking on the Internet to purchase a wheelchair.   At the moment, she gets around using a walker, hopping with the one leg.  When their home was renovated, they installed a stair electric chair. Wise move.

Her timing is good.  There is no gardening to be done right now and sailing season is over so she can rest to her hearts content.  But the moral of the story is to keep your Christmas decorations in closets on the main floor.  My friend Mary now has a lot of time to practice her flute.