I had a cortisone shot in my right knee this morning. We’re staving off replacement until I’m a little older, so right now we are just working on pain management.  It brought back memories of a spring morning several years ago. I was walking to my office when I tripped in the parking lot. A co-worker took one look at my knee and yelled for someone to call 9-1-1.

Not too many terrible things were happening on that fateful morning because within a few minutes a Gilbert cop showed up, quickly followed by six Gilbert firemen, and five members from my staff. So there we all were in the parking lot laughing (and crying) and joking about my mishap. As Truvy said in Steel Magnolias, “Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion.”

I was soon whisked away by an ambulance to start my journey of recovery. I had surgery to repair my patella, which had broken into five pieces and partly pulverized into dust.

Now one thing I failed to mention is I was wearing super cute Mark Jacobs white wedge shoes. The same shoes I was wearing when I tripped on a dance floor several years ago at the Gilbert Historical Museum Gala and broke my wrist and tore my rotator cuff. Those injuries required two surgeries and 9 months of rehab.

Before I was loaded into the ambulance a co-worker grabbed those cute shoes of mine and threw them right in the dumpster.

First: Accidents happen all the time. Some minor, some major. The more prepared you are ahead of time, the easier those accidents will be on family members. I have all my healthcare documents in place, including my healthcare power of attorney and HIPAA release. And if the worst would have happened, I also have life insurance to protect my family. (A friend later told me someone she knew had the same surgery and died a week later from a blood clot.)

Second: never buy super cute Mark Jacobs white wedge shoes. I think they are cursed. Even though the price tag said $79.99, those shoes really cost me 4 surgeries, months of rehab, and $12,000 and counting in medical expenses.