Musing On A Painful Event

According to About.com:

Beltane kicks off the merry month of May, and has a long history. This fire festival is celebrated on May 1 with bonfires, Maypoles, dancing, and lots of good old fashioned sexual energy. The Celts honored the fertility of the gods with gifts and offerings, sometimes including animal or human sacrifice. Cattle were driven through the smoke of the balefires, and blessed with health and fertility for the coming year. In Ireland, the fires of Tara were the first ones lit every year at Beltane, and all other fires were lit with a flame from Tara.

I celebrated Beltane and the first of May by breaking the little toe on my right leg.

My roses are in bloom so every morning, I traipse around the yard cutting new roses for my friends. I found a supply of cheap vases in a nearby thrift store so it costs virtually nothing to give away roses each day.

On one such foray, I stepped on a damp paving stone, my foot slid and my small toe didn't. I was wearing zories, which offered no protection at all. Bye-bye little toe.

It hasn't even been six months since I broke my left hand during a disagreement with an 18-wheeler on my way to the university one morning last November. I had to have surgery to put the hand back together and wore a cast for more than ten weeks.

I put a positive spin on that event because it moved me from my beloved Explorer to a Toyota at the very moment gas prices spiked upward.

I'm trying to find a positive spin for my little toe. If I'm looking for balance in my life, this is the first break on my right side in five years. In addition to the broken left hand, I shattered my left leg five years ago (my garden is on a hillside and I slid down the hill one icy February while cleaning out the beds). Then four years ago, I tried to break up a dog fight. Spraying mace didn't work (the dogs didn't even acknowledge it; I could barely see through the tears). Hosing them didn't work and hitting the attacking dog with a large branch didn't help. I was finally reduced to prying his jaws apart with a piece of wood during which he chomped down on my left thumb breaking it to bits.

Actually, now that I think of it, a small toe is nothing. So maybe the upside is that it gave me a chance to count my blessings this morning. Instead of griping because of my upcoming deadline, I need to give thanks for the opportunity. Instead of worrying about the upcoming workshop, I need to look forward to meeting new and interesting people. Instead of whining about that toe, I need to be glad I have two healthy legs.

Yeah, that small toe is a reminder that I'm alive and healthy and still going strong.