The Bike Crash
I had this feeling just pulsing in me to take Grayson on a bike ride. I cannot even explain how important it felt. So after cleaning the church we headed home and I told Grayson to grab his bike.
He was ecstatic!!!
And I’m telling you, I was full of love and peace and it felt so right that I was actually very ponderous about what in the world I was feeling.
My bike was in the storage unit but Cade had gotten for me before leaving town but had forgotten my helmet. I had the thought that I should be wearing one (though the angle I got I still would have been beat up but more on that later) but I decided it was just a loop around the block so Grayson threw his on and off we went.
I Should Have Listened
As we came around the cul-de-sac, I had the thought, no I should spend time with him. So I motioned to cross the street and we’d go on the walking trail. I could see a little slope from the road to the trail and I had a flat out thought to walk my bike down it. Immediately I rolled my eyes at myself as if I was being wimpy as it was so tiny, and continued forward. Just as I got to the edge I could see that it wasn’t a slope but a little ledge of asphalt and instead of grass that section had loose gravel.
I knew it before it happened.
The tire snagged the broken up asphalt and then skidded through the loose gravel, unable to grip the ground and as much as I tried to save it the bike spun out to the side and launched me forward.
I cannot stop replaying, like an old VHS on rewind, my face about to slam straight into the concrete.
I felt my teeth immediately.
They were no longer where they should be.
“Mom, Are You OK?”
And as I lifted my head to assess the damage I my brain was whirring with the worst. Feeling the blood everywhere and the dirt and the reality of hard concrete under me, both helping me feel secure and pulsing as the enemy that crushed me I felt as though the bones in my face had shattered and my lips had been ripped from my mouth.
And then I heard the softness of a familiar voice behind me…
“Mom!!! Are you ok?!”
I rolled over and started to sit up, absolutely certain I’d just crushed every bone in my right hand and my face…
What are the Chances?
The day before my accident a little girl down the road had come to play with Grayson for the first time. I grabbed her dad’s number just in case, we chatted for a bit and then I carried on with my life.
What are the chances?
I had just watched my face hurl into the asphalt and was slowly pushing myself up from the pavement to look myself over. I glanced up and saw a man walking calmly but pointedly across the street to me. He had a smile on his face and concern in his eyes as he squatted down and said, “Hey, you ok?”
What are the chances that a dad we’ve seen at the bus stop would officially get to know me just the day before?
What are the chances that because of his background he would have seen plenty of bloodied up faces and wasn’t the slightest bit worked up about me?
Lifting me to my feet he walked me across the road, back to our neighborhood and said, “how are you feeling?” Just as a wave of nausea hit.
I told him I thought I was going to be sick and he very calmly sat me day and instructed me to put my head between my knees and began breathing with me.
No Coincidence
A familiar face brought me more peace and assurance than a stranger could have.
No, we didn’t know each other well, but there was no coincidence that in my time of need my heart was known so well by a kind Father above that I was cared for by someone I knew.
He began to assess the damage, carefully and gently checking my nose and hands, asking if I could move my fingers and if anything hurt.
I couldn’t and it did. Oh it did!!
Some would say it was a coincidence that Jordan was passing by, but we know better than that…
And then I heard a car door fly open and the frantic shout, “oh my gosh, Mom!!!!!”
My Daughter
Peyton was supposed to be at a baseball game. In fact, I had just texted her, not knowing she was still in the basement to let her know I’d gone on a bike ride with G.
And the game was in the opposite direction we had gone on our bikes so imagine my surprise when I heard her voice.
My head shot up in bewilderment, “what was she doing here?!”
I’ll never forget the look on her face- sheer terror. Her eyes were wide and she was running to me as if she could cross the street in one leap.
Jordan asked who this girl was and I told her it was my daughter. Just saying those words lit my heart up. It was my daughter, my family was with me.
The ER
With blood dripping into my mouth I mumbled, “I’m ok.”
But once a stubborn teen, always a stubborn teen.
“Oh my gosh, Mom. No, you’re not!”
I looked back down and noticed the torn flesh on my left hand and the blood smeared across my palm as she crouched down beside me.
Ok, maybe she was right.
“I’m calling Dad in Idaho, come on.”
I stood up and Jordan and Peyton walked me to the backseat of her car. My hands burst into excruciating pain and my knees started to tremble. Whatever shock had been there was wearing off and I was feeling it all… especially those front teeth hanging backwards in my mouth like a little kid on the swing set about to burst forwards, legs projecting them up into the clouds.
I wanted the dentist.
I needed a dentist.
And the doctor.
My voice broke through her fog of fear as I said, “you need to take me to the dentist.”
But the ER won, and I imagine both were equally important. There’s only a short time to move teeth back, that much I knew, but brain bleeds need help too.
“Were You Wearing a Helmet?”
Even as I sit at soccer tryouts I see two girls ride up into the park without helmets. My heart is teetering on the edge of panic, it’s not worth the false freedom to flee the safety of the rules.
That was the first question the ER doctor asked when I told him what happened, “Were you wearing a helmet?”
Superman
I laid in the hospital chair, tears silently streaming into my ears completely prepared to just breathe deep and accept whatever happened.
My friends and family all began praying because they knew this was my one thing. The one fear I’ve had my entire life, breaking my teeth. My one thing!! 😭
While I was at the hospital Cade, who was in Boise was calling around to find someone to help with my teeth. In fact, he is secretly Superman. From the moment this began, he had called ahead and completed all paperwork at the hospital, gotten my darling sister-in-law to come take the kids as Grayson was very shook up, amongst a million other things.
Dentist’s Office
As soon as I was released we dashed to the dentist who immediately began numbing my upper mouth.
⭐️ Important information! We’ve since learned that timing is KEY for teeth and it’s an oral surgeon you should head to first if possible.
Listen, I’m not at all trying to be dramatic, but it was traumatic to lie there, everything hurting and all alone with my head pressed into the stomach of an unfamiliar dentist who grabbed my teeth and used all the strength he had to try shoving my teeth back into place. And that’s where today’s post and those falling tears began.
I will spare you the details and instead fast forward a few days…the day I was so anxious for but knew had to happen.
I went back to the dentist who informed me the teeth had died. And now we move forward with what I desperately didn’t want to face, fixing this mess.
Oral Surgeon and Endodontist
The next day I headed off to the oral surgeon and then on to the endodontist. We will deal with moving teeth later as my biggest concern is not letting anything slip by that should be addressed. Especially since my jaw and bite feels off and the teeth are greying so quickly.
I’m learning a lot.
Like admitting that even though my right hand doesn’t look bad the pain and lack of mobility is a clear sign that it’s I hired in the inside. A real symbolic lesson for me to remember that people can be the same and to help and treat them gently is the only way to heal.
We All Have a Part to Play in Healing Wounds
Now, I don’t know if I’ve been living under a rock and you all already know about @silverceuticals but my dear friend, Shay (@icecream.foodie) sent me this nano silver magic and I don’t feel the need to say one thing other than look at the pictures for yourselves (SilverCeuticals has actually been so kind to offer our readers a 25% discount on some of their products! Click here!). I am shocked and truly beyond grateful that she was inspired to send me something to heal me.
We all have a part to play in healing wounds, sometimes it’s literally physically and Shay did just that for me.
I pray the rest of my doctors will be able to help with the rest.
READ: The Bike Crash