This month I had an unusual amount of book reviews, so I missed an anniversary. On February 13th in 2015, I broke my foot.
It was Friday the 13th late at night. My bedroom was heavy with the chill of a snowy day. I had finished reading for the night and made one last bathroom trip. As I leaped out of bed, my feet hit the cold hardwood floor. That sent me rushing through the icy room without watching where I was going. As I crossed over the bear throw rug, my left foot caught on our twenty-pound black cat, Coco. He had made it a habit to lie on top of the bear and blend in.
In what was only a few seconds seemed like forever as the cat didn’t move, but I did. My weight shifted trying to counterbalance, and I reached out to the dresser but missed. At that moment, I knew I was going down. So, I twisted in an attempt not to land on top of the cat who has a lot of trust in me I won’t hurt him. That’s when I heard a loud snap. Then I hit the ground.
I laid there next to Coco wondering what to do next. Through this event, my husband was still peacefully sleeping. After several painful tries to get up, I finally called out for help.
“Why are you lying on the ground? You should get up and sleep in the bed.” My groggy husband replied.
It took him a few moments to realize that I couldn’t get up and was hurt. Once he uprighted me, I hopped on one foot to complete my task. Each jump jarred my foot painfully.
Not wanting to go to the hospital in the middle of the night, I slept with a fortress of pillows protecting my injured foot.
I didn’t sleep much.
The next morning was Valentine’s Day. The special day was spent in the ER and sharing my story kept the hospital staff amused. My husband never left my side and reassured me it didn’t matter where we were if we were together. He had a good point.
Later, I left on crutches and rested through the weekend. As the days went by, I found I had too much time on my hands. I tried to fill it with TV shows, but I realized I needed something to do.
That’s when it was suggested by a family member that I should publish one of my children’s books.
With all this new time on my hands, I did a lot of research. Finally, I was ready to push that button. I was published.
Once I released that first book, I haven’t stopped. I kept going forward into the writing world.
So, happy late sixth anniversary to the time I tripped over our black cat on Friday the 13th and broke my foot. What seemed like a bad thing ultimately opened the door to a whole new world for me.
Embrace your inner child by reading a good book! D. L. Finn
That’s turning lemons into lemonade. Happy anniversary!
Thank you, Staci:) It was a sure way to get my attention.
Happy Anniversary (I think) D.L.:) Hey, at least it got you started down the author path, so I’d say good came from bad.
It’s a anniversary I look back with a lot of fondness and a smile as to how it happened.
That is a great story but I still don’t want to trip over my dog and break my foot.
I prefer not to break anything again, but it sure got me on the right path.
From lemons come lemonade… I see what kind of person you are, Denise!
Happy Anniversary, Denise. I’m glad you too broken eggs and made beautiful omelet. 😁
Thanks, John. Its been a beautiful omelet since then:)
😁
That’s what I call making good come from a bad situation. Congrats on the anniversary. (Of becoming published, not the fall!)
Thank you, Joan. Yes, a lot of good came from that moment.
I love this story, Denise. Talk about turning a bad situation into something productive and positive. Yay for you and happy anniversary! 🙂
Thanks, Mae:) I feel lucky. It is also my Kindle anniversary since carry books was a challenge lol.
Hi Denise, great story and Happy Anniversary!
It must’ve been auspicious to break your foot on Friday the 13th while tripping over your black cat!
The world gained your writing as a result. xox
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Thanks, Eden. If it was going to happen to give me that needed push, at least it had a great story behind it! Xo
This is a great story. Sorry about the late night accident, but glad it gave you time to publish.
Thanks, Craig. It sure was a hit in ER that day…lol. Yes, gave me lots of time for sure.
This is a real case of every cloud has a silver lining, Denise. I also came to publishing my children’s books in a haphazard way. Some things are meant to be.
Yes, I agree it was a very silver lining! So true things are really meant to be and life has a way of getting our attention.
It’s strange how life can work out that way, isn’t it? Happy . . . not breaking your ankle, but starting a new writing path . . . anniversary.
Yes it is! Sometimes we need it so we do what we are supposed to be doing. Thanks, Mark 🙂
Horsefeathers! What a terrible anniversary, Denise. I shuddered about the sound of the bone snapping. It brought back memories of my own injuries. I’m so glad you are safe and well now. Hugs on the wing.
Although, not a fan of breaking my foot, I’m so glad it finally pushed me to do something I kept putting off. So, for that I celebrate the day my life took another turn.
Hugs right back, Teagan xo