Daily writing prompt

Have you ever broken a bone?

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I may have blown this story out of proportion a few times when I’ve told it, I see that now when I look back. I’m older and wiser. Sometimes the further you go from things, the more clearly you can see them.

A very melodramatic introduction to a brief story about breaking the middle toe on my right foot. I’m not happy that I broke a bone but happy I have something to contribute to this lame prompt.

It was approximately twenty years ago. I was on maternity leave with my second baby and he was nearing a year old I think. My spouse was out of town for whatever reason so it was me at home, day in and day out with a three year old and a one year old. That part of the story stands out. I was carrying my son Taz, the one year old, and was trying to parkour over the obstacles of lego blocks, trucks, dolls, Barbies, etc.

I somehow tripped and when my right foot finally met the floor, it also met the corner of the wall. I remember it hurting so badly that I had to tell myself, do not drop this baby, just keep it together for a second and find a place to sit. Stubbing a toe hurts!! Then I looked down, in bare feet as per usual, and saw that my middle toe was positioned over top of the fourth toe and pointing between two and three o’clock, not twelve o’clock like it should be. Instinctively I reached down and pulled it back into place.

It was throbbing, my whole foot was aching and beginning to get red from the toe backward. Being a nurse myself, I should have known better, I should have known there’s really nothing that can be done for a broken little toe like that but for some reason I decided to dress up my two small children and drive over to the emergency room. Such a dumb move and a waste of time. I think that’s the part of the story I used to really embellish. Ugghhh poor me, single parenting, broken toe, limping to the ER with my two small children in tow, poor poor me. It was so dumb.

Anyway the doctor humoured me and had me go get xrays done on it. Which confirmed it was in fact broken. They wrapped a small bundle of gauze around it and sent me home. Within hours my entire foot was bruised with some beautiful shades resembling green camoflage. And that’s my story of a broken bone. Pretty small scale but a story nonetheless.