Elasticity

On Wednesday we had our homeschool PE class.  One mom was teaching cooperative games, and at the end I led everybody outside and we finished up with a quick 'how-to' on the game 'elastics'.  Here in the states it is known as 'Chinese Jumprope'.  I learned the game as 'elastics', when I was 10 years old, living in Canberra, Australia and attending primary school there.  I still have my original elastic band that I brought home with me at the end of that year, although it isn't as stretchy anymore.  Kinda like me.

Elastics is a fun, yet challenging game.  You make up a routine with your friends, and you have to follow it without messing up.  Messing up can include snagging the elastic band, stepping on it (or not stepping on it), skipping a step and so on...  If you make it through the entire routine, the band is moved up the leg to a higher position, and then you do it again, and again, until you mess up or can't jump that high.

As a ten year-old, I could make it up to about hip-height.  I remember the playground, my friends (who were a very eclectic, international mix, given the close proximity of our primary school to the University), the sounds, the smells... this was by far my happiest memories of Australia from that time.  I do remember one of the girls from the group - Josephine (she pronounced it yaw-seh-feen), who was Belgian and always right.  She would argue and argue if you called her out during her turn.  She annoyed me...so no happy memories of her, at that rate.

Anyway, so I led the kids outside to the grassy field because I figured it was a softer landing if anyone tripped and fell, and for me, it was easier on the joints to jump on the grass versus the gym floor.  I launched into my explanation of the game, even going so far as to say you can jump with shoes on, but I prefer barefoot because you're less likely to snag the elastic on your shoe and get called out.  So I called Jordan and another boy over and had them stretch the elastic between them, at ankle height, and demonstrated a routine.  It was the routine that I played in Australia, revised in the parts where my memory gets fuzzy.

So, begin by standing with both feet to the left side of the bands, with the bands at ankle height.

00 |  |

0|0   |   Hop and straddle the left side

|   0|0   Hop and straddle the right side

| 00 |    Hop to the center (both feet)

0 | | 0   Hop and move both feet to the outside so that you straddle both bands

0\\0    Twist the bands between your ankles as you make a quarter-turn to the left

00 | |   Hop out to the left side of the bands, back to where you started from.

3| |    Turn a quarter-turn to the right to face the left band, nudge your toes underneath it

\

|3|   Hop over the right band, carrying the left band over it with the top of your feet

/

/\   

00    Turn a quarter-turn back to the left, and you are now standing in a diamond shape.

\/

0 | | 0  In one hop, you jump high and turn a 180 to face the opposite direction in mid-air, and come down straddling both bands.

.....and that's where I fell.  I hit the ground in a wide straddle, but my bare feet on damp grass meant that my right foot slipped back and to the side, but knee stayed put.  An audible 'POP!' sound was plainly heard by everybody, and I dropped down onto my backside.

It's embarrassing to fall in front of people, but our group is a different breed.  Within two minutes, one mom was pulling out some arnica gel (which I totally believe kept the swelling to a minimum), one ran to get a bag of ice, and another was comforting me.  She herself had badly sprained her ankle a few weeks ago.  I dragged myself backwards so that I could sit in the shade and then wondered what to do.  Could I drive?  How the hell am I going to get to the car?  No way would I allow anyone to carry me.  Providence meant that an older girl attending PE that day was on crutches herself, after cutting the bottom of her foot only a few days before.  Her mom said that I could use the crutches - they had more at home.  Wow.

We watched the kids jump for awhile, and then I was at my pain limit, I needed to get them home and get myself to Urgent Care.  The rest of the day was long, painful and tedious.  I had a long drive to an adjacent town to pick up my new CPAP machine.  Urgent Care took almost two hours.  The doctor did unspeakably painful things to my knee, slapped a brace on it and sent me home.  He told me to make an appointment with a orthopedist.  I had to drive back and forth to Loveland, twice, to get Rylan to dance pictures.  All the while I tried not to throw up, which I desperately wanted to do.

Three days later I am able to hobble around without the crutches, but driving is excruciating.  I see the ortho guy on Monday.  I suspect a torn MCL.  I can stand to put a little weight on my foot now, but the knee is constantly slipping sideways out of joint, causing involuntary gasps and yells due to pain.  I don't think that is normal.  I get to look forward to a summer of rehab.  Again.  This is how I spent last summer - rehabbing my shoulder. This summer was supposed to be lots of walking, running, and hiking.  Several 5K's were on my to-do list - including one today.  I am pretty bummed, but trying to keep it in perspective.  At least the injury is something I can recover from.  It is so small-potatoes compared to what many people in conflict areas are dealing with on a daily basis.  I guess with rehab I once again get to focus on me.  Getting around for a couple days on crutches just reinforced for me that my upperbody strength is pretty much nonexistent.  

Funny thing about the examination room...we were in this same exact spot with Colin almost two months ago, when he broke his leg.