Walking, Running and Playing Tennis
Once I was allowed to use my toe for walking, I found that every step was extremely painful. I could only walk without pain if I walked very slowly. Nonetheless I committed myself to walking every night a quarter of a mile. It was really cold and I was very slow. Anybody who saw me walking like that probably wondered who this strange person was. Why would someone walk so slowly like this in the cold? But I persisted.
And I was able to get to a place where I was able to walk
fast (albeit with lots of pain). The day
before my appointment in November I had gotten so pumped up as I was walking that I felt I
could run. I almost did run but stopped
myself because I wanted to wait to hear what my doctor would say.
At every point along the way of my recovery things were
uncertain. Would my toe be
amputated? Would I need a fourth
surgery? Would I be able to do things
like run and play sports? In the midst
of these questions, I put my trust in God and believed that He would heal me so
I could walk, run and play tennis.
~
When I got to the doctor on November 17th, he had very good news for me. He told me that I could now run, jump and mountain climb. He said that I can do whatever I want with my toe. He also said that this was the best he had ever seen a toe that went through an accident like I did.
This was some of the best news that I had ever heard in my
life. It had been nearly 4 months since
the accident and here I was being told that I was going to be able to do the
physical activities that I had loved doing my whole life. I showed this video
in chapter 5, but it was actually recorded 3 days after I had received this
news.
My doctor did mention that if it turned out that for
whatever reason that I needed a surgery in the future that I could have one. When he saw 3 months later, he confirmed that I
didn’t need a surgery and put it off into the future indefinitely. As he was leaving that he told me that he was
still shocked that I was able to keep my toe.
~
When he told me that I could run, I literally ran that night. Just like walking, running was very painful
at first. I could only do it by listening
to techo music as I ran. But I eventually
found a groove and was able to run without pain. In a strange turn of events I actually
mastered running before I figured out how to walk fast without pain.
I eventually found my groove with walking fast as well. I also started playing tennis in my gym’s racquetball
courts. After playing for some time I
was able to play on the balls of my feet – which was big progress.
As of a year later my toe does have some bend in both joints
but it currently does not have the same range of motion as my right toe. I believe that God will bring it back in
time. Other than that things are basically
the same. Whenever I have a new type of
movement I try to ease myself into it to try to make sure I’m confident that I
can do that move but my everyday activities – from walking at work, to running
a mile, to playing with my kids – I can do without issue.
I am so grateful to God that He carried me through this
time. During which I found in Him a Friend, who
sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24).
You pushed me violently so that I fell, but the Lord
helped me.
-Psalm 118:13
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