Butterfly Soldier

 

As I am eating my "light" breakfast of a tiny cup of coffee and a sliver of Jay's banana bread with cream cheese, I am obviously nervous about my ACL surgery later today. I know it's the most common orthopedic surgery and surprisingly, so many people I know have gone through this as well, but I still can't shake the feeling. One of the many kind phone calls I received yesterday was from Sejal, my fellow butterfly from Choice Center, and she was with me when the injury happened. We joked about the fact that the last words that came out of my mouth before I fell were:

My name is Jocelyn, and I am a JOYFUL person

We were in LV and the exercise of the moment was to stand in front of the group of 40 and convince them of your statement. So as soon as I said it, I started dancing around, skipping, grand jete'ing, doing whatever I could do get a rise (literally) out of everyone. Once every single person was standing on their feet, it meant that they were convinced of my statement. There were a handful of people not yet standing, so I approached those few without saying a word, but with just the smile on my face and the energy in my body. I guess I was a little too enthusiastic and as my flats slipped on the carpet and I fell on my side, totally heard the POP in my left knee....but like the last two Miss USAs at the Miss Universe pageant...got back up after I fell and still kept going. I knew something was wrong, but I still managed to get those last few people out of their seats. And as I was being applauded, yet limping back to my chair, Sejal...a doctor, of course, came over to me because she knew something was wrong. And appropriately during the next exercise, she and I were put into the same group for one of the best parts of the entire program. She and I, along with two other women in the group who are as amazing as she is, were put together because we were all on the verge of "transformation." Like a butterfly coming out of its coccoon and ready to fly...so it was obvious that our song of choice (actually, I pushed the song really hard) was "Defying Gravity" from Wicked. Even in as much pain as I was in, the four of us doing our thing that night was the most amazing experience ever, one that I will remember always. That is why I giggle that at least I sustained my injury doing something worthwhile. And I was dubbed "Butterfly Soldier" because even after my fall and being in so much pain, I still gave it my all that night and probably may have aggravated the injury, but it was so worth it. And it is a lesson to myself and others that I have two good legs (at least I will, very soon), so why am I not dancing (something I love), skipping, doing cartwheels with my girls, all of the things I love to do as often as possible? Once I pound through surgery and the physical therapy that will follow, I will be doing it all...and then some!!!!