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The Fall Or The Fall Becomes A Teacher

Connie Mason Michaelis, Lifestyle Consultant at The Piper Assisted Living and Memory Support

It happened August 12, 2018, or did it happen thousands of years ago in the book of Genesis. I took a shortcut down a flight of stairs ending head down on concrete. The left side of my body took a beating which honestly saved me from a head injury, for that I am grateful. The ER doc said, “I’ve got good news and bad news, you have multiple fractured bones, but you won’t need surgery.” Again, I am grateful. But there was no way to anticipate the lessons to be learned. My fall has given me a serious time of reflection and a significant paradigm shift. I plan to share some insights over the next couple of weeks. I had a very wise father-in-law that facetiously but truthfully said, “If you’re not going to learn from your mistakes, there is no use making them.” Today, I’ve embraced the same philosophy, “If you’re not going to learn from your tragedies, there is no reason to have them!”

Lesson number one. Gratefulness is good medicine. This is the truth – there is always someone else who has it worse and you could always be worse off yourself. So counting blessings is occupying my time: loving family and friends; a wonderful husband who is getting an A+ in caregiving; great medical care; powerful pain medications; and time to rest, reflect and write. There are so many new lessons that I will share going forward, but first I want to explain my reference to the Genesis fall. We are created as choice makers and that entails a lifetime journey of learning and growing, making mistakes and amends. Whether we make good choices or poor ones, we have opportunities to adapt and improve. Whether we are recuperating from an accident or from a deep emotional wound, we get to choose how we go forward. We can become angry and despondent or grateful and enlightened. Whether you accept a literal interpretation of Genesis or not, the wise author must have known that life is full of falls and we choose how to respond. Everyday we choose life or death and gratefulness is a life-giving choice. More to come on the fall. Give us a call at The Piper, 913-400-7006, where we’re learning together to be grateful and move forward!