Getting Old

Central Oklahoma hasn’t seen a winter as cold as this one in more than twenty-seven years. Two major snowstorms since Christmas Eve have left snow that has yet to melt. About ten days ago, the weather took a toll on me.

I was walking with my pugs in the backyard. The ground was slick and it was dark. When I reached the two-foot step down, I missed the first step. Plummeting face first, I landed on my left shin, skinning it and lying on the ground for minutes as my puggies swarmed me, thinking I was playing.

Several days passed before my right leg began to ache. Soon, the pain was almost unbearable. I began taking aspirins, ibuprofens and Tylenols, nothing doing much to stem the pain in my leg. I finally made a doctor’s appointment, afraid that I had a blood clot, cancer, or maybe something worse.

Doctor L x-rayed my knee and determined nothing was broken. He prescribed a steroid pack to lessen the swelling and inflammation in my leg. He is a miracle worker because this morning I awoke with no pain. I walked around, awaiting the sharp throbbing pain to start. It never did.
I spent the entire day without taking a single pain reliever. I think I’m on my way to a cure but one thing still bothers me: I have an overwhelming desire to play major league baseball.

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