Wet Tile

It was inevitable. Anne told me so at REHAB. I was going to fall again. I just needed to get back up once I did. 

It happened a rainy Wednesday night after I got back from a friend's house. I knew my wheelchair wheels were wet, but I didn't think about the fact that the bottom of my fancy, expensive, custom made green shoes were also wet from the transfer from the car to the chair. I needed to go to the bathroom, so I wheeled up to my bathroom doorway as usual. Planted my feet on the tile, put my left hand on the radiator and my right hand on my mobile handgrip, and hefted my weight from my butt to my feet with the help of my hands.

In slow motion, my feet slid forward rather than holding my body's weight on top of them and my hands slipped down - left down the radiator and the right dragging the mobile handgrip down the doorframe. I settled on the floor unsure how to proceed. Well, the only way is up. As Augustus Waters says, "I'm on a roller coaster that only goes up, my friend." I rolled to my stomach and using the radiator and lowered handgrip along with my wheelchair now in front of me, I pulled myself to my knees. Miraculously, I managed to get from my knees to my feet. Honestly, I'm still not sure how that happened. With my braces on, I'm unable to bend my ankles at all, and the shoes were still a little wet. My knees had dried off the tile, though. I was praying that the slick toes of my shoes - custom made to have less friction for my hips that don't have the strength to lift my feet all the way off the ground - would hold enough for me to get my feet flat and find some traction with the rubber on the back of the soles. 

Praise God, I managed to get to my feet. I turned myself around and sat in the wheelchair, taking a few deep breaths to calm my nerves. Pulling myself off the floor? Check. Like a pro.

I wheeled myself into my bedroom to change my shoes into a pair that were completely dry before attempting to get back into the bathroom.

I survived this terrifying experience, and I'm grateful to have the success under my belt, but I'm also praying I never have to have a second run at it. 

My other prayer requests remain unchanged as I continue the difficult and overwhelming task of transitioning to life as an independent member of society dependent on others for so many things. Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement as I navigate the challenges ahead of me.