a F ll in By Kimberly Crum / Illustration by Silvia Cabib
M
g
y broken ankle was a small thing relative to current events. Even as I crashed to the ground, burning lava was consuming a city in the Congo. My fracture did not approach the status of that event, yet it was similar in one way. The injury reminded me of my vulnerability in a world where random events happen. I was walking down the street while on a winter vacation in Deer Valley, Utah, when I slipped on a patch of ice, flew into the air, and landed on the unforgiving concrete. Cursing in an uncharacteristic manner, I tried to stand. My ankle crumbled beneath me, and I fell to the concrete once more. Stunned, scared, and alone, I crawled into our rental condo, then cradled my swelling extremity, mumbling to myself all the while. “Oh, my God. Help me. Help me.” ***** I had not wanted to go on this vacation. “I’m too busy,” I’d told my husband. “I can’t be away right now.” He insisted, saying, “This will be good for our family.” “I don’t want to ski.” “You do not have to ski.” “Remember our last trip out West?” 48
february
2013
Today’s Woman