The Perks of Breaking Your Leg

After a few days of moping around and feeling sorry for myself as I hopped along on my crutches, I realized that breaking your leg is not all bad. My pity party ends here. In fact, I can think of many things that I've actually enjoyed about the whole ordeal, however masochistic that may sound.
I recently fractured my tibia playing in what will probably go down as my last soccer game ever (I've already had two other major knee surgeries as a result of the game). I think I am finally going to take the hint that my body has been rather nonchalantly dropping on me over the years and hang my jersey up on the wall; at least end my career as a player and look for other opportunities through which I can still be involved in the game. Anyway, here are some of the great and some not so great situations that breaking a vital appendage such as your leg can bring about....

Pluses:

1. Copious amounts of time to read, as well as search the internet and watch youtube videos. I have found some really terrible stuff, as well as some stuff that I find rather amusing. For those of you who like political satire, watch this: I'm Voting Republican
2. Sitting down in the shower...this adds a whole other level of unwinding and relaxation to the experience
3. Coming up with new ways for to carry stuff. I have found some very creative ways to transport the necessities to my life, and by that, I mean mainly my multiple cups of coffee in the morning
4. Getting an insider's look at what it is my dogs really do all day....survey says, sleep, bark, and then sleep some more as barking can be quite tiring
   

5. Getting some much needed cuddle time with my cat. He has a 6th sense that can tell when you don't feel well, and he makes sure to stand guard at your side

Minuses:

1. Having someone follow you to the bathroom in your own home and shut the door behind you. Quite an awkward moment, no matter how many times it happens.
2. Listening to your neighbor from 8 AM to about 12, leaf blow, weed wack, mow, plant, reap, sow, and do god knows what else to his front lawn. Its actually kind of sad, and I'm starting to feel kind of creepy spying on him doing yard work. Hey, it beats daytime television.
3. Not being able to get food or drink without it being an at least twenty minute affair, and at often times, extremely messy
4. Frustration. Although having others take care of you may seem appealing, it gets very frustrating. There is something rewarding about doing things for yourself, even if it if only a glass of water, and I feel as though I have lost some control over my own life
   

On a much more serious note, being immobilized for the time being has given me valuable incite as a future teacher. I had to give a presentation this past Saturday in class, and it was then that I realized how much physical movement is involved with teaching; movement that up until now I have largely taken for granted. I am not saying that being able to walk is absolutely necessary to teaching and someone who, for example, is in a wheelchair, cannot be a successful teacher. Rather, being unable to move around freely as I normally would has raised the actual physical aspect of teaching to my attention. I am being to realize the depth of teaching; how the process comes down to the level of our very own bodies.

Secondly, this injury has given me a glimpse into what life may be like for some of the students I may have who are disabled, whether it be physically and/or mentally. I consider myself a sympathetic person, but actually living as a disabled person has made me realize that the people I encounter who are disabled never get a break from their disability. What I mean to say is that I have considered difficulties people may have when I am in their presence, but the realization that when they go home, when they are out of sight and mind, they are still dealing with their disabilities every minute of everyday has really hit home to me now. This is not to say that I feel nothing but pity and sorrow for people with disabilities, rather I am both humbled and awed by them. The fact that they live normal lives and come up with new and creative ways to allow them to be "just like anyone else" (pardon my cliche) lends itself to the amazing capabilities, tenacity, and creativity of human beings. It shows how powerful and determined the human mind really is, and how no task is ever impossible, it just needs to be examined in a new light.

And so, although this injury may suck, I would like to take a moment now, to thank my cracked tibia, as it has allowed me to look at some aspects of my life and my future with a new light as well.

If you are interested in more material on dealing with disabilities in the classroom, there are a number of rich, useful websites and sources. I found the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities website very helpful, containing endless amounts of information ranging from legislation on No Child Left Behind and its relation to disabled children to valuable research and practices teachers can use in the classroom.