Breaking My Leg Was a Good Thing

bydandcand

71 followers

2 years ago

I broke my leg last month and ended up needing surgery. My initial reaction?

This is the worst thing that could have happened...

or so that is what I initially thought. According to my mindset at the time of the incident, there was nothing more detrimental than taking away my ability to move freely.

I lost my physical independence/freedom.

I have ADHD so sitting still is excruciatingly difficult. It does not come naturally to me and for the first two weeks since surgery, I have had to sit with my foot above my heart most of the time to keep the swelling down.

Day one after my operation, I was telling my husband that I would not be able to continue on. He might as well start making plans to raise the kids alone. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating (I can be over-dramatic sometimes.) but in that moment, it seemed reasonable to think that way.

Crutches are my means of transportation these days and let me tell you, they are a pain. At first, I had bruises in my armpits, my hands hurt, and my upper body had to readjust to all the effort it took to walk. I'm getting around pretty good now (except for flights of stairs, still avoiding those), but I would rather be able to walk with both legs. Understandably I look forward to that glorious day when I can get on my Peloton again, grab a cup of coffee without hassle, pick up my son from school (can't drive yet). We really do take our legs for granted; at least, I did.

Our income took a significant hit.

My husband works very hard for our local school district and makes good money. However, considering he primarily maintains the main high school outdoor sports facility in our city of 300,000 and counting, winter is his slowest season. We plan for the 3-month reduced cash flow throughout the year, but we do lean on my income pretty hard during those financially leaner months.

I work for a couple grocery shop and delivery companies. Having spent 23+ years raising kids (our youngest is 12 now) and homeschooling for 15 of those years, I had put my career dreams on hold to be home which is often the case for many women who were raised like I was. There are plans to build something I'm proud of, but in the meantime, gigs like DoorDash, Instacart, Shipt are helping our family.

As I'm sure you can understand, these jobs require the use of two legs if you want to make decent money, which I do (sometimes up to $40/hr). Well, that went out the window when I fell delivering groceries to a house on that fateful icy morning. In one moment, our income dropped significantly.

I am choosing to look at the opportunity in this.

My destiny is always in my own hands. That is what I have really been learning over the past few years. Breaking my leg has given me the opportunity to put into practice that truth.

My husband said to me on that day after surgery, "This is your shot. You can grab it and make something of this opportunity, or you can squander it. It's a gift to you, but you get to decide what to do with it." He's a wise one that guy!

At first, I struggled with accepting the thought of this being a gift. I couldn't see around the pain and the loss of what was. So I let the thought sit and grow a bit, pondering on it. Eventually, I recognized that I had chosen this for myself.

My husband (God bless him) reminded me that I had been voicing the desire to have more time to just think about what I wanted to do now that the kids didn't need me so much. Obviously, I wasn't planning to deliver groceries the rest of my life.

Entrepreneurship is in my blood. I am excellent at setting goals and achieving them. Those side gigs, without an employer dictating my working hours and income potential, revealed to me that I can be a real go-getter without the need of someone forcing me to do anything. I have drive and ambition within me.

Breaking my leg was something I manifested for myself.

I didn't intentionally (nor would I have chosen this method) manifest it. But without realizing it, I did. I wanted time to think, to explore, to figure some stuff out, and the universe said, "Here you go!" There were other reasons why it manifested in this way, but speaking on that is for a different day.

This isn't a punishment. It's a gift.

Now I have a whole lot of time to discover my dreams and pursue them. I am choosing to look for the positive and recognize that it creates more positive.

I found Wealthy Affiliate during this time. To me, this site is like finding a hidden treasure, something I have been searching for. It is a perfect match to what I was looking for: thorough, step-by-step instruction to get started, training videos (I learn best by watching and then practicing it myself), great financial potential (the sky really is the limit with affiliate marketing), an excellent, helpful community (so many wonderful people here!), and a great deal more. I could sing WA's praises for a while, but if you're reading this, I'm probably singing to the choir.

Look for the gold, and you'll find more.

My point is, if you look for the good in any situation, you will find it. If you look for the evil, you'll find that too. You get to choose for yourself where you place your focus, nobody else gets a say in the matter.

For me, I desire to choose good every moment, and I've noticed something. Goodness is everywhere and in every situation.