A Near Life Experience

Finding those Rare Moments of Living in this Exercise of Life

Roller Coaster Life

Life is always busy and crazy for me but this week might take the cake as the most up and down week in my life. Monday I get up and start my day early wrapping up all my work early so I can enjoy an evening of motocross action. While I am sure it was still pathetically slow I was feeling sporty hustling around the track pretty fast considering it was only my second day of the season. Working through the tighter top part of the track my confidence was pretty high and as I came through the fast lower section my mind was reeling remembering all my Moto tips.

Gas, Clutch, Shift, Gas, Eyes up, Stand up … OH FUCK

I have crashed lots of motorcycles lots of times, crashes on the street, crashes in the dirt, crashes on the race track, for the most part time slows down your brain runs a 1000 tragejectory calculations, you scout your landing, and then everything speeds up as you tumble. This crash had none of that, one second I was riding, pulling hard on the gas, the next I was rolling on the ground clawing the air trying to find a breath. My entire right side clenched and throbbing, I watched the stars criss cross my view in a panic as I tried to breath. I started throwing off gear, goggles, then helmet, then gloves with some futile hope that something would make it easier to breath. By this time my riding cohorts came around and watched my struggle trying to figure out how best to help me. After a few minutes they got me to my feet and restarted my bike and asked if I was ok to ride back to the truck. I obliged limped the bike back to the truck at sat evaluating my need for hospitalization.

As a MAN the hospital is a gamble, if you are really hurt going to get drugs and get fixed is great, however, if you go and they find out nothing is really wrong then you have proven conclusively that you are a pussy.With my breathing still shallow and painful I rolled the dice and decided we needed to go to the hospital.

After the standard 1 hour + wait I was seen, poked and prodded and given a bevy of tests from an ultrasound to xrays, to a full cat scan. Results came back that I had in fact broken 3 ribs and bruised my right lung. The lung troubled the Docs and they required that I stay the night to insure that my lung did not fill with fluid.

Staying in the hospital hooked to a morphone drip is not the worst way to spend a Monday night, but I was in a full panic as Tuesday was my 2 year anniversary and the day I had been waiting for to propose to my girlfriend. I had been working with Oster Jewelers for 9 weeks to make the perfect ring, and I had been writing for weeks trying to find the words to tell this woman exactly what she means to me. Now I was stuck in the hospital doped up on morphine with a unfinished letter and a ring that was still at the jewelers only a few hours from my anniversary.

Of course Momo being the girlfriend she is stayed with me till I dozed off that night and was back bright and early to keep me company and effectively keep me from finishing my engagement tasks. Between xrays and nurses checking my vitals I would send Momo out to get snacks while I made frantic calls to the Jewelers and sent my most trusted friend to pick up this ring that I had never seen.

I was quiezee from my medication and my nerves were on end hoping that this ring was going to be everything I hoped and something that she would love for ever. My friend Fish called me from the jewelers, and with the girlfriend by my side I tried to play cool as he told me just how SICK the ring looked. I breathed a sigh of relief that unfortunately sent white hot pain through my ribs.

By 4 o’clock I was discharged and told to stay off my feet and on my drugs so that my lungs would be encouraged to take full breaths. Momo dropped me at home and went to grab my presricptions, some groceries and a pizza. While she was gone I hobbled around to finish my letter and take a look at this ring for the first time.

I limped back to the couch and took my rest and recovery position and waited for Momo to return. As we were eating dinner Momo looked at me and asked if I had forgotten our anniversary. I told her I had not but that I could not have gotten her a gift because I was in the hospital, and all I had was a letter.

I read the letter slowly and deliberately and she had begun to cry as I told her how fortunate I feel to have her in my life. As I finished I struggled to make my way to the floor to try and get on one knee. As I pulled out the box I started to cry and barely got out the words. “Will you Marry Me” and through her tears she shouted yes a half dozen times and reached around me with the most painful and perfect embrace.

I am blessed to have my health and to still bounce a little when I crash, I have the most amazing friends a person could hope for, and now the woman of my dreams has agreed to be my wife. This came to be the only way it could have and it is just so fitting for our crazy lives. It is amazing how happy I feel and how that happiness works better than any Percocet to dull the pain of a few broken ribs.

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