Picking Pecans
1/10/06
It was an amazing moment because
when I started falling, I saw it happening in slow motion and actually controlled the fall... or at least I think I did…
There I was, standing on a
car in my yard trying to reach the pecans that were out-of-reach. Those pecans off THAT tree were flawless and I wanted
more. What else is there to say?
Everything was going fine until
my phone rang. I left it on the trash can because I was uploading some photos... and you ought to already know how long
that takes. Anyway, I was expecting a call from a guy in Dallas and sure enough, I found out later that it WAS him
calling. So there I was, standing on the trunk lid cracking pecans and that phone started singing to me.
I started to jump down feet-first but decided that at 53, I was too old for that.
I had on a very expensive pair
of trousers and didn't particularly want to kneel on the car because I didn't want to get them dirty so instead I
put my right foot on the bumper, thinking that I could use it as a step.
That was a bad idea, let me tell you because THAT was when I slipped and lost control, falling.
I twisted to the right as I
started falling and landed on the cement driveway that was mostly covered with pecan shells, leaves and branches... on my
TAILBONE.
I remember thinking, as I was
falling, "Don't hit your head Ron, whatever you do!"
This took me back to when I
was 12, visiting my good friend Willis Hunt's grandmother's house on New York
Street. We had both climbed up a tree onto the roof and were on the way down the tree when
I fell on my TAILBONE in the flower bed, hitting my head on the ground too. I had a headache for months afterward.
41 years later, my mind
told my body not to let my head hit the ground like the last time... as I was twisting and slipping off the edge of that trunk,
headed for the ground. Remember, all this happened in a split second even as all these thoughts zoomed thru my head.
That
was and is the most amazing thing don't you agree?
I lay there on the ground for
about 3 minutes, hurting and assessing the damage to my body. I rolled around in those pecan leaves and relived the
fall, thinking about how it felt in slow-motion while it was happening to me and hoping that I hadn't hurt anything that
would prevent me from walking or driving. I also was thankful that there were no witnesses.
It was bad enough to
have busted my butt but to have witnesses would add insult to injury.
I imagine that if it were to
happen again in the next 41 years... that is IF I reach 94, that kind of fall woulsd certainly kill me, slow motion
or not. No, I have got to be more careful because the older you get, little things like that will kill you because your
body can't recover as fast. You've heard about old people breaking their hips and dying from the recovery? Like
that.
I picked myself
up, limped to get my phone and checked the voice mail.
I felt like I was 100
for the next 6 hours, sore also because half the pecans I fell for were either rotten or unripe.
Plus I'm writing this because
I can't sleep. I made my deal with the guy in Dallas buying a limo,
went home at a decent hour and yet I still can't sleep.
Sleeplessly I surfed
the net and found an interesting travel photo website and I want to share it with you.
