Lying face down, nude, with my eyes closed, the masseuse said, “I invite you to relax, concentrate on your breathing, live in the moment, and love yourself.
As my modesty fell away, I floated away.
Some Say it’s a Temple …
My body has not felt like mine for a long time. It belongs to my husband and the children I bore and fed from it. And, weirdly enough, my employees, too … because a healthy boss is a good boss. Today I think of it as the vehicle that transports my head, heart, and soul from place to place. Some have called their body their temple. I think of mine more like a car. It needs a tune up, lube job and the tires rotated every so often. As far as miles go, I have more road behind me than in front of me.
A couple of years ago, I had what I would call a fender bender, when I sprained my ankle. I always thought of sprains as minor injuries, but have since learned they often don’t heal as well as broken bones because a bone can be set and a ligament cannot. More wisdom with age. I would just as soon not learn that lesson.
Since the sprain, I have worked consistently on trying to strengthen my ankle by walking, doing yoga, swimming, weight training, ballet, and now massages.
While working on my recovery, the thought occurred to me: women are not the only people who feel their body belongs to others. An athlete’s body is not theirs, either. It belongs to their team, their fans, and their coach.
Learning from Athletes
As I try different physical therapies, I stay encouraged by thinking about those athletes, their injuries, and the discipline it takes for them to recover. Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence suffered a concussion, Michael Jordon broke his ankle early in his career (I highly recommend streaming his documentary “The Last Dance” on Netflix. Even if you are not a sports fan, you will enjoy it.) And in the 2019 championship game between Alabama and LSU, Nick Sabin played a young, talented quarterback, Tau Tagovailoa, who limped off the field after losing the game to the LSU coach Ed Orgeron (“Go Tigers”).
I learned that previously, in the month of October, Tau had suffered a high ankle sprain and chose to accelerate his recovery by trying a new procedure called “tightrope.” In this innovative surgery the doctors secure, with rope and screws, the tibia, fibula, and ligament tightly in place. The things competitive guys will do to play! I always wonder what their mother’s think.
Getting Over It
Ridiculously, I think and fret a little about the young, talented athletes I see get injured. I ask Grady about their draft position, team and pay into the pros and occasionally Google them for updates.
As I come in and out of my world of thoughts, I wonder, “Has my injury changed my career?” No. Just the style of the shoes I wear. And then my mind jumps to thinking about cleaning my shoe closet.
