His song Amarillo by Morning has always been a favorite. In my own head, I believe I can sing it almost as well as he does. After all, I do know the lyrics and am particularly fond of that one line “broke my leg in Santa Fe.” Almost none of the other lines pertain to me or my life but this one took on new meaning for me on this date exactly ten years ago. I did indeed break my leg in Santa Fe at SkiSantaFe. 

Two rides I’ll never forget – being taken down the ski run on a stretcher and riding down the mountain road in the ambulance. It has been said life is about enjoying the journey and not just the destination. Some journeys are rough though and the pain of a broken tibia plateau was a 10+ at times. When God wants my attention, it obviously takes grand gestures. 

For the first time, I had to be totally dependent on others. That wasn’t easy for me but I learned how important it is to let people help you. I like to be in control. Nothing humbles you more and reminds you you’re not in control then being helpless. And just when I thought I could manage, I was overdoing it (shocker) and fell backwards out of a chair. I had to call a friend to rescue me because I really had fallen and couldn’t get up! 

Back to the journey, ten years later and I’m continuing to use the lessons learned on that mountain and throughout the six weeks of recovery.

Don’t Look Back

I learned to ski when I was 12. Tim learned to ski on our honeymoon when he was 23. On this ski trip he was skiing faster than me and often waiting for me at the bottom of runs. I couldn’t believe he was beating me and I decided I had to keep up with him, no, I had to beat him. I finally was ahead of him and made the mistake of looking back over my shoulder to see how far ahead of him I was. To this day, I still don’t know exactly what happened to put me at the base of that tree but there I laid, helpless and unable to stand. How often do we waste time and energy looking back instead of living in the moment? 

Don’t Turn Down Help

We couldn’t manage by ourselves. Thankfully we didn’t have to. Incredible support during two surgeries and nine hospitalization days in Norman. Friends driving me to physical therapy. Visits while I was at home, stuck on the couch, needing social contact. We were meant to live in community because we want to help others and we need to let them help us. My youngest granddaughter was ready to get out of the bath this morning and said “Help Me.”

Don’t Quit

When I was talking to my son from the emergency room, he said “mom, don’t be one of those people who says they’ll never ski again.” One year later, on March 2, 2014, I skied that same run and have continued to enjoy the sport I so love. It would have been easy to hang it up but I was determined not to quit. I was scared, nervous and teary. I did it though. Sometimes you just have to dig deep and lead with courage. 

It’s hard to believe ten years have passed. What isn’t hard to believe is how that accident changed me. It taught me to live in the moment instead of the past, that relationships keep us connected and to never stop doing what you love. 

By the way, we did make it to Amarillo by morning because my husband drove through the inky black of night. I rode in the backseat in an air cast and arrived in Norman later that morning and was taken to surgery in the afternoon. My surgeon’s name was Moses and when he asked if he could pray before surgery, I knew everything would be okay.