March 2023

 Dear Family and Friends,

    The month of February was short and seemed to go by extra fast. On the 10th, True flew off to Sedona, AZ for her annual two weeks with friends. On the 14th, Valentine’s Day, I woke up to see beautiful white flakes of snow falling outside my window. What a pleasant surprise! But also a surprise to have the schools closed and the Relief Society’s luncheon canceled, that I had planned to attend. The snow was only 1” here, but must have been much deeper where others lived, for them to call it off. Funny thing, our snow was intermittent for the next few days, but True said snow in Sedona accumulated and lasted until after she left. Evidently a massive snow storm had hit all of the western states. We, here in “It’s The Climate” Grants Pass, are not used to a lot of snow. We like to see it, play in it, but not drive in it. I am so pleased that others are willing to drive in inclement weather and to escort me {and my wheelchair} to activities when neither True nor Linda are available. Recently, when it was Ward Temple Night, Brother and Sister Seable offered to take me with them, even though Stephan uses a wheelchair or walker himself. They are the parents of Heidi Jarvis and are very precious indeed. The Medford temple being over 30 miles away, I felt it only right to offer them a bit of money for gas, which they readily refused, saying it would deprive them of the blessings they might otherwise receive for doing an act of service. My, such wonderful people! Others have done the same thing for me too. It is I who am being blessed by knowing them. 

    Though I’m not proud of it, I guess there is something else you should know about what happened on President’s Day. Even though I received a new “sleeve” for my stump, which does help me walk more straight, I have still not been up on it enough to give it a good testing. Thinking that I have other things more pressing, I tend to sit in the wheelchair too much. While in the chair I’m always looking down at our laminated wood flooring, and seeing the slightest crumb or dot of something on the floor, I move closer, sit on the edge of my seat, wet my finger, lean over and pick it up, always making sure my other hand is holding onto the chair for support, I think I must have done this same thing at least hundreds of times. So, I was very confident of myself when I decided to surprise True, before she got home, by mopping all the floors. She doesn’t seem to own a mop, but uses this same kind of hand/foot technique. So, I got a small bucket, put in as much soapy water as I thought I could handle, placed it on the floor beside me, got an old washcloth ideal for mopping, and started in. 

    In order to make myself higher when eating at the table, I use two support cushions. But these must be removed so that I can be as close as possible when extending my hand clear to the floor. This I did do. I really feel good about cleaning this way because I can feel if something is stuck and needs a little more effort than just swiping over it with a mop. Of course it does take more time and is a bit risky, but I was sure I could do it. I started about 11:30, did the laundry, bath and kitchen floors. Then, got fresh water and did the living room, down the hall, and finished up in the workroom, which was the end. I had accomplished my task! But, as I went to push myself back further into the chair, it being unlocked, started to slip away from me and I fell onto the floor landing hard on my right hip/thigh bone, the same one that holds my prosthesis. So, there I was! Sprawled out on the floor with no one else around. I lay there a minute to assess my situation. I could not move! so I used the emergency button that was around my neck. It was now about 1:00. My responders were called, but just the daughter of my neighbor, Karen, was able to come quickly. Then the men from the fire dept. were able to get me up and back into my chair. They could not take me to the ER but would call an ambulance for me. Since my daughter, Linda, was working only until 2:00 that day, I preferred to wait for her to take me there. By the time we were able to get an X-ray, the pain was really beginning to set in, but the pictures showed that nothing was broken, so a strong pain reliever was given and I was sent home to rest and recuperate. This, sorry to say, also kept me from using my legs for days. So, my foolishness cost me quite a bit. But don’t worry, I’ll be better soon. 

     I send my love to all. Marie