A Casual Spill

Today I fell down the stairs. I fell hard and I fell fast. It hurt a lot. It hurts still. It hurts in many different places. After gathering myself and making sure no one was looking I took stock of my injuries. It was through these injuries and years of watching crime dramas that allowed me to piece the whole incident together. Most people have already heard all about it and had their chance to ask questions. I made some others aware of it and apparently the tale went through my workplace rather quickly. I'm not sure if it was to make me the butt of a joke or to just spread the warning that things were not as they seemed today. I should preface my tale with the reiteration that I'm neither old nor young, neither agile nor clumsy, neither fast nor slow. This fall could have happened to a prima ballerina and would like have ended just as comically. Well, except for the pain.

I was leaving the house in the early morning, just as the sun peaked it's friendly rays through the cloud cover. This was a factor because it had been raining previously in the night, a cool, dirty rain. The kind of rain that soaks miserably to the bone, unrelenting cold striving to freeze you to the core. It had made a thin, invisible, slippery layer upon every surface, unbeknownst to me. I gathered my things and strided confidently out the door. I swiveled once clear of the house to latch the door in my usual fashion. When this chore was complete I had my pack sack in my left hand and nothing in my right. I put my best foot forward but instead of the familiar purchase that rubber and concrete have when they meet, my foot shot ahead and upwards, my other foot followed suit a moment later. Looking back on it now I can appreciate that the entire event would have been quite comical to witness, if only it'd been someone else, although I wouldn't wish it on anyone, especially not someone weaker or more frail that myself. My feet went up, the bag somehow ended up in the middle of the lawn and I was airborne. I didn't get much air or at least it was a short flight because before I knew what was happening I'd slammed down very hard about halfway down the steps. My hat fell off on impact, my body didn't bounce like I'd hoped; instead just forcefully slid down the last step to come to an abrupt rest at the bottom of the steps. Until that point I'd flowed much like an avalanche except the fact that metal railings are not pliable like trees and concrete steps are not a layer of snow and ice underneath the flowing rampage.

Upon impact the wind rushed from my lungs and caused the almost familiar panic of having the wind knocked out of you. It took me but a second to gather my wits and get up. Instantly and without choice I took an inventory of my injuries. Skinned knuckles on my right hand, a throbbing pain on my shoulder blades, particularly the right side. Sore right shin. Sore left hip. Very tender left elbow. I scrambled to get my bag and keys. During said scramble I scanned the neighbourhood. No one else was out and about, thankfully. I took a minute and some deep breaths leaning into the truck and caught my breath. It was pretty scary when I look back and think how close I came to smashing my skull on the cold, heartless concrete step edge. I think that is part of getting older, realizing you're not invincible. I scraped the window clean and got in. Giddy up, the day wasn't going to wait. I'm sore in the spots mentioned and also my whole right hand is stiff but I'll live........this time.