A Sun Ripened Mango
On February 9 I returned to Panama after my wonderful 2 weeks in Costa Rica. Even though it was hard to see Neal flying off to Canada, I was glad to get home and see my critters, including Darren..lol. Of course the scare of almost losing Rio made that reunion even more special. He was at the the airport waiting for me. I was never so glad to hug a little dog in all my life. I was really looking forward to resuming my idyllic routine.
That was not to be. I was feeling a bit tired, under the weather, not quite myself. I had a few rides on Ali, but couldn't quite seem to get it together. Nevertheless, on Feb.17, even though I was not feeling well, I just wanted to go for a quiet ride. So I saddled up and set off on what I planned as a slow, uneventful ride. We just walked one of our usual loops and headed home. Then, not far from our gate, Ali fell...on me. It all happened so unexpectedly that I did not even have time to get scared. One second I was on him; the next, he was on me! He slowly and carefully rolled away from me and got up. He just had a scraped knee. I, on the other hand, was on my ass on a dirt road and could not get my feet under me. Fortunately, he did not go far. After awhile, I managed to get up and hobble over to him. Getting back on was out of the question as my right ankle was not in good shape. So, leaning on him, I limped home. Now, I love my little dog, Rio, dearly but he sure ain’t no Lassie! Timmy would drown in the well before Rio would get help! Despite my pleas to “Go get Daddy!”, Rio just smiled and pranced around me. When I did manage to get close enough to yell for Darren, my husband was hardly the sympathetic type. “What the f_ck did you do now?”
Well, as it turned out, what I had done was fracture the small outside bone of my ankle. But I did not know that for almost 2 weeks because I was too stubborn to get an X-ray. In those 2 weeks, I found out that the reason I was feeling so lousy to begin with was that I had pneumonia. Damn! So I got antibiotics and tried to recouperate. I was still feeling crappy so I thought maybe my Dr. Fix-it, Jim, could tweak my neck or whatever and help me. He took one look at the tennis ball sized swelling on my ankle and immediately marched me off to get an X-ray.
So much for my diagnosis of a “sprained “ ankle. Now I was totally pissed off. But things can always get worse.
During Carnaval the entire country shuts down to party, so I had to wait a week to see an Orthopedic doctor. I promised Jim to be a good patient and stay off the foot until then. No worries, I like hammock time. Alas, being slightly off balance, the hammock took advantage of my dilemma and threw me violently...seriously...to the tiles. SNAP! The wind left my lungs and pain shot through my ribs! I just lay there in disbelief, the only consoling thought was that I had managed to avoid doing more damage to the ankle. Darren and Rio were both appropriately concerned and whisked me off to the doctor...again! Dr. Gomez just shook his head in disbelief, gave me a X-ray form and a prescription for some MUCH stronger pain killers. Off to the hospital in David we went.
I must say that I have been very pleased with what medical attention I have had here, but I do not want to further investigate the Panamanian medical system. I got right in, no waiting, saw a doctor at Emergency and got the X-ray. Surprise 🤪! No fractured ribs (I sprained and snapped the cartilage and muscles where the ribs attach to the sternum) ...but...more fluid in my lungs😠The pneumonia wasn’t gone. Three more trips to the hospital for treatments on the nebulizer. I finally had my appointment with the Ortho doctor who gave me the good news: no surgery needed, and then the bad news: stay off it for at least 6 weeks. Have I mentioned that we are leaving for Amsterdam on April 19? Arrrrgh! It was already March 7th.
Ok. Whatever. Got a good ankle brace (will highly recommend Air Cast products) and proceeded to sleep 💤 the days away. Thank God for Rio, Netflix and I Books. But, with too much time on my hands, my anxiety and depression started to kick in. Rio stayed with me constantly and Darren took Ali’s chores on like a pro. But I was miserable 😖. The days dragged on, and it seemed like I was cursed: family members were dying, I felt isolated, people were being....people, the heat was brutally oppressive; and.....then...I finished Season 3 of Outlander and Netflix did not have Season 4 ðŸ˜ðŸ¤¬
What more could go wrong? Thank you for asking!
April 1 - 1:30 am, I had to pee. I looked at floor and saw a ...
Now in what befuddled part of my brain did I think it would be a good idea to use toilet paper to dispose of this nasty bug? Unfortunately, I listened to it and got rewarded with a damnable sting to my fourth finger on my right hand! Benadryl to the rescue, pain killers, Tea Tree oil and an ice pack had to suffice for treatment. Nonetheless, my finger swelled, throbbed and itched. It is still itching today as I write this on April 5. Mother Nature was still not finished with me, though.
Having thoroughly tamed the rogue hammock, I had been enjoying some lovely naps in it. I was having such a one on a lovely afternoon when a pesky fly started buzzing around. I swatted at it a couple times; then I felt it under the back of my knee. I grabbed for it and got promptly stung by the SOB right in the crease of my knee. ENOUGH ALREADY! It hurt like a bastard; more Benadryl, ice packs, After Bite and pain killers. More swelling, throbbing and itching. Yes. it is still itching. I was convinced that I had some really bad juju happening and so was one of my friends!
Christine, a fellow horse person and ex-pat neighbor offered to come over and "sage" me. Now for those of you who do not know, saging is a form of smudging, an ancient practice to cleanse all negative energies from a person or a place. It uses a form of meditation and visualization whereby you start at your feet and push all the dark energy upward while replacing it with a soft, effusive, loving, white light. All the time I was doing that, Chris was burning a sage bundle, the smoke from which took the dark energy I was getting rid of and casting out to the Universe. I had taken part in rituals like this before and believe in their effectiveness. This is what a sage bundle looks like.
It was so peaceful. She did Darren too. I have now gone a few days with no further disasters (notice that I had this done BEFORE I got on the plane to Europe?). However, poor Chris may have picked up my bada juju - a neighbour of hers idiotically set a fire in all this drones which spread to her land. Fortunately, she, her husband and all their critters and vital buildings are fine. We are all scanning the sky hourly now as the rains should be returning any day to end this brutal dry season.
I am now walking short distances without the brace; my chest, ribs and shoulder still give me grief; the stings are healing and I am able to resume a few activities. I think that this whole experience has brought Darren and me closer. I am so proud and appreciative of the way he stepped in without complaint to look after Ali to let me heal. I think he is proud of himself, too, although he won't admit; he and Ali have formed quite a bond that is very cute to watch. Rio, my little Guardian Angel...I love him so much it scares me. I am surrounded by love; I guess the Universe decided that I did not realize how much I was loved and thus forced me into a position of vulnerability where I had to accept that I needed help and was not always in control. I had to be literally put flat on my back to open my heart and trust Darren to look after everything. It was a humbling lesson to learn. In the last few days, Mother Nature has shifted her mood and has brought me gifts instead of grief: the first ripe pineapples from our little garden and sun-ripened mangos from Ali's tree in his pasture. And...best of all...it is thundering and showering as I write! All will be well.
Well, as it turned out, what I had done was fracture the small outside bone of my ankle. But I did not know that for almost 2 weeks because I was too stubborn to get an X-ray. In those 2 weeks, I found out that the reason I was feeling so lousy to begin with was that I had pneumonia. Damn! So I got antibiotics and tried to recouperate. I was still feeling crappy so I thought maybe my Dr. Fix-it, Jim, could tweak my neck or whatever and help me. He took one look at the tennis ball sized swelling on my ankle and immediately marched me off to get an X-ray.
So much for my diagnosis of a “sprained “ ankle. Now I was totally pissed off. But things can always get worse.
During Carnaval the entire country shuts down to party, so I had to wait a week to see an Orthopedic doctor. I promised Jim to be a good patient and stay off the foot until then. No worries, I like hammock time. Alas, being slightly off balance, the hammock took advantage of my dilemma and threw me violently...seriously...to the tiles. SNAP! The wind left my lungs and pain shot through my ribs! I just lay there in disbelief, the only consoling thought was that I had managed to avoid doing more damage to the ankle. Darren and Rio were both appropriately concerned and whisked me off to the doctor...again! Dr. Gomez just shook his head in disbelief, gave me a X-ray form and a prescription for some MUCH stronger pain killers. Off to the hospital in David we went.
I must say that I have been very pleased with what medical attention I have had here, but I do not want to further investigate the Panamanian medical system. I got right in, no waiting, saw a doctor at Emergency and got the X-ray. Surprise 🤪! No fractured ribs (I sprained and snapped the cartilage and muscles where the ribs attach to the sternum) ...but...more fluid in my lungs😠The pneumonia wasn’t gone. Three more trips to the hospital for treatments on the nebulizer. I finally had my appointment with the Ortho doctor who gave me the good news: no surgery needed, and then the bad news: stay off it for at least 6 weeks. Have I mentioned that we are leaving for Amsterdam on April 19? Arrrrgh! It was already March 7th.
Ok. Whatever. Got a good ankle brace (will highly recommend Air Cast products) and proceeded to sleep 💤 the days away. Thank God for Rio, Netflix and I Books. But, with too much time on my hands, my anxiety and depression started to kick in. Rio stayed with me constantly and Darren took Ali’s chores on like a pro. But I was miserable 😖. The days dragged on, and it seemed like I was cursed: family members were dying, I felt isolated, people were being....people, the heat was brutally oppressive; and.....then...I finished Season 3 of Outlander and Netflix did not have Season 4 ðŸ˜ðŸ¤¬What more could go wrong? Thank you for asking!
April 1 - 1:30 am, I had to pee. I looked at floor and saw a ...
Now in what befuddled part of my brain did I think it would be a good idea to use toilet paper to dispose of this nasty bug? Unfortunately, I listened to it and got rewarded with a damnable sting to my fourth finger on my right hand! Benadryl to the rescue, pain killers, Tea Tree oil and an ice pack had to suffice for treatment. Nonetheless, my finger swelled, throbbed and itched. It is still itching today as I write this on April 5. Mother Nature was still not finished with me, though.
Having thoroughly tamed the rogue hammock, I had been enjoying some lovely naps in it. I was having such a one on a lovely afternoon when a pesky fly started buzzing around. I swatted at it a couple times; then I felt it under the back of my knee. I grabbed for it and got promptly stung by the SOB right in the crease of my knee. ENOUGH ALREADY! It hurt like a bastard; more Benadryl, ice packs, After Bite and pain killers. More swelling, throbbing and itching. Yes. it is still itching. I was convinced that I had some really bad juju happening and so was one of my friends!
Christine, a fellow horse person and ex-pat neighbor offered to come over and "sage" me. Now for those of you who do not know, saging is a form of smudging, an ancient practice to cleanse all negative energies from a person or a place. It uses a form of meditation and visualization whereby you start at your feet and push all the dark energy upward while replacing it with a soft, effusive, loving, white light. All the time I was doing that, Chris was burning a sage bundle, the smoke from which took the dark energy I was getting rid of and casting out to the Universe. I had taken part in rituals like this before and believe in their effectiveness. This is what a sage bundle looks like.
I am now walking short distances without the brace; my chest, ribs and shoulder still give me grief; the stings are healing and I am able to resume a few activities. I think that this whole experience has brought Darren and me closer. I am so proud and appreciative of the way he stepped in without complaint to look after Ali to let me heal. I think he is proud of himself, too, although he won't admit; he and Ali have formed quite a bond that is very cute to watch. Rio, my little Guardian Angel...I love him so much it scares me. I am surrounded by love; I guess the Universe decided that I did not realize how much I was loved and thus forced me into a position of vulnerability where I had to accept that I needed help and was not always in control. I had to be literally put flat on my back to open my heart and trust Darren to look after everything. It was a humbling lesson to learn. In the last few days, Mother Nature has shifted her mood and has brought me gifts instead of grief: the first ripe pineapples from our little garden and sun-ripened mangos from Ali's tree in his pasture. And...best of all...it is thundering and showering as I write! All will be well.
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