It could have been worse….

It started out beautifully!

We drove to Canaveral National Seashore to spend the day and it was ‘picture perfect’!

This is one of the first photos I took.

And this is the last one on my camera for the day.

We spent 4 hours on the beach in the bright sun, walking for at least half of that time.

So when we were driving home and the clock said 5:30 pm, we knew we needed to stop and get our afternoon snacks out of the cooler because we were still an hour or more away from home.

We stopped at a beautiful park with the St. John’s river running alongside and while hubby got the snacks out, I went to the bathroom.

Walking back, I was tired from all the walking at the beach.

I still had my beach flip flops on.

My blood sugar was low and I needed to eat.

And I was distracted looking out at the river and didn’t pay attention to what I was walking on.

The sidewalk was buckled and uneven…

and I tripped.

When I stubbed the toe of my shoe, I took 2 long strides with my arms straight out. My body was trying to balance itself. But it couldn’t. And I took a swan dive…face first into the rough concrete sidewalk.

My right cheekbone and jaw took the brunt of the fall and blood started gushing. I’ve never seen so much blood come out of my nose and mouth ever.

And now we get to the good part. You know with my positive attitude there will be a good ending.

A beautiful lady named Emilia, her son and granddaughter, Tia ran over to help me. Emilia called 911 and she stayed with me the entire time. Her son rushed to get my scared hubby and then hubby stayed busy running back and forth to the bathroom to rinse the blood out of towels, get water, move the car closer, etc.

The EMS people came and they were great too.

I am battered and bruised today and I’ll be eating soft foods for awhile but nothing is broken.

My face looks like I was in a bad fight that I lost

and I have bruises up and down my right side…

hand, arm, hip, leg.

Please pray that I will heal completely. And when you say a prayer for me, ask God for an extra blessing for Emilia and her sweet family. I don’t know how I could have done it waiting for the EMS without her by my side, helping and encouraging me. A sweet Hispanic lady that took the time to care and be a loving Christian to a stranger.

Accidents happen.

I always think of the movie, ‘Love Comes Softly’ and how he describes how God works in our lives. He comforts us when we are hurt. I rode home with 2 ice packs on my face and a towel wrapped around my head. But we made it home finally at 7:30 pm. I bathed and drank chicken broth and slept on my left side all night.

It could have been worse.

I’m very thankful.