I am thirty-five years old and I still feel like I am figuring out what to do with my life. As I grow older the years seem to pass more and more quickly, which doesn’t make the said dilemma any easier. It seems that I am either thinking about the past or looking forward to the future. I have a hard time living in the present.
Every year we plan a family tour of sorts to visit all of our immediate families, which live as close as two and a half hours away and as far as twelve. The event is great in that we get to see everyone, but it is everything but relaxing and this year for whatever reason I just wasn’t in the Christmas spirit and honestly, I wasn’t really looking forward to the trip. I would really have just preferred to stay home and hang out with my wife, my son, and my dog. I don’t remember actually praying for this, but in God’s own providential way he answered my prayer.
We left home on December 14th and on the 15th, the day before my birthday, I broke my back. I had an accident on a trampoline with stretched-out springs that caused a mild compression fracture in my L1 vertebrae. The doctor says I don’t need a brace and in 6 to 8 weeks I should heal completely. For about 12 days I barely got out of bed, then started gradually gaining my strength back. I am now about four and a half weeks into the healing process and I feel really good. I have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow to get his input on the matter.
I got to spend Christmas and New Years at home with my family, forced to live in the present. Thankfully, my injury wasn’t any worse and I can look forward to having a good back again, but I have never experienced anything like this before. I am not used to being still. Don’t get me wrong, I know how to veg, but not having a choice in the matter is another story. I was unable to do anything physical and I had to be taken care of by someone other than myself. This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when thinking of being home with the family for Christmas.
I believe that accidents don’t happen as far as God is concerned and this would be no exception. I also don’t think we are supposed to waste time trying to figure out what God is up to by analyzing every circumstance that arises in our lives. However, with these circumstances, the one thing I kept noticing was the incredible people in my life. My wife who has to put up with me in good health normally now had to do everything for me on top of taking care of our fifteen month old son and our eighty-five pound dog, and did so with such grace and selflessness. So many friends voiced their concerns and prayers and offered help with meals or whatever we needed. Even neighbors that we hardly know offering to decorate our house for Christmas. Garett, my partner in rhythm with Caedmon’s, upon hearing about the accident and not knowing the extent of the injury called an immediate prayer meeting with some fifteen of our friends that he was performing with. Several of the people involved in this independently have told me how moving it was to see Garett act out such genuine love and concern. I am so humbled to know that I am cared for by so many. Its so easy to take for granted the familiar things in life and they tend to go unnoticed unless you are forced to look at them.
So I begin the New Year with a fresh perspective on life and a deeper appreciation of friendship. Living in the moment has never been more important to me, because that moment is all I’ve got. Thank God for broken backs.
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