My Daily Adventures with Me and My Broken Leg: November 2011

Well, time surely does fly as I've noticed over the past year. Today is the one year anniversary of my surgery. I remember waking up at 5:45 and going into surgery with my dad. In retrospect, the 10 weeks I spent in a cast seem like nothing compared to the other 42 weeks of the year. I've done so much this year and I haven't let my leg slow me down one bit. I worked at a summer camp for 10 weeks, went bowling- without crutches, finally started towards my photography degree, became a radio DJ, made several life changes, and I'm currently working on training for a 5k in May. I was told that I wouldn't even start running in till May of next year, but here I am, currently training at 1.2 miles anytime I run and working my way up every week or so. I've set a goal for myself and I don't look at what is behind me, only what is in front of me and I am determined to run this 5k. I remember the night I broke it just sitting in my bathroom thinking I would never be able to walk or run again and my life would be differently from that point on. I was right in a sense, that my life is very different now that it was a year ago, but for the better. I'm pretty much able to do just about anything with my leg now, I even got back on the wakeboard this summer and maybe eventually I'll get back on the snowboard. But for now, my goal is the 5k and running it successfully no matter the time because I'll go at my own pace, I just want to finish it.

It's also fun sharing my story with people and hearing their reaction to "I fell off a razor scooter" because typically the reaction involves some sort of comical response or a giggle. However, over the past year, I have met several people with the same surgery but different story. I look at their leg, notice a 7 inch scar on the outside of their leg and go "metal plates and screws too?" and they instantly know what I'm talking about. It's certainly a conversation starter and it's interesting because often times, these people I meet have just started walking again, and are looking to me for tips. I never thought that would actually happen, I was always seeking out the tips of others, and here parents of campers or peers are coming to me. It almost forms a bond in a weird way because you know what the other person has been through and it's not an easy journey.

I often times forget my scar is even there and forget when it happened and the other day it occurred to me that it was almost a year ago that I was riding to the hospital in an ambulance on 10 mg of Morphine. I can't wait to see what the future brings, I'm traveling to Atlanta this November and London this December so I can't wait to see how airport security treats me. That will be a story for another day I'm sure. But for now, the best I can do is keep on keepin' on and focus on what is in front of me and forget what's behind me.

These are just some photos from the past year and what I have done: