"Mom, Dad broke his heart."
"What do you mean he broke his heart?"
"Dad needs you. He fell off the ladder and broke his heart. I told him I would go and get you."
"Dad fell off the ladder?" The reality of the situation was sinking in very quickly. I jumped off the tractor and took off running toward the tree. From a distance I could see him standing next to the friend of ours that was helping him cut down the tree. I slowed my pace thinking that my five year old was mistaken. "Did he really fall off?" I asked again.
"Yes, Mom."
Then I noticed his behavior. He gripped his chest and started pacing. After 22 years of watching this man, I knew what was happening. He carries the weight of this family on his shoulders and is the ultimate tough guy. He does not bend or complain about anything really. But when he is in pain….a lot of pain, he paces with his hands in fists.
That's the man I ran up to.
He had been cutting down the tree when a branch fell the wrong way, clipped the ladder out from under him and he fell squarely on the ladder across his sternum. He couldn't breathe, only in short breaths, but was up and pacing, hands in fists.
After much convincing on our part, we finally told him that the hospital was where he needed to go. Many x-rays and some strong pain medicine later, we took a very loopy man home with an extremely bruised/possibly fractured sternum. We are thankful that is all he had. I know he was in a lot of pain, but it could have ended a whole lot worse. We know that from first hand experience. Several years ago his father fell from a ladder and hit his head something fierce. To this day, we are very lucky that man is alive and kickin'.
As far as my man is concerned, I am crazy about him. This family is crazy about him. And we just don't work well without him. That's a good thing. Because the very next day he was up and helping out the family….it's what he does best. Stubborn ol' thang.
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