I missed the first day of the team building exercises but I knew I wouldn’t be so lucky the second day. I woke around five am when Miss Preston got up to get out of my car. I waited for a little while and got my clothes together for a shower and got out to follow through on my plan.
After the shower I went out to where the catering truck stood, waiting on early stranglers like myself. I was one of the first and got a surprised look from the chef that was still busy with the bacon in the pan.
“You up early. I don’t have anything fo
She woke me at five am when she got up to get out again. This time I was wide awake when I smelled the toast and bacon. I suddenly realised I was ravenous. I got dressed and made my way to the food truck, feeling the stiffness in my muscles.I stretched when I got to the truck and yawned. A coffee was placed in front of me almost immediately.“Morning you.” She told me with a smile.&ldqu
It felt as if I was flying. I felt the air play with my hair and heard the dull thud of what sounded like fan blades. My body felt confined, as if bound head and foot. I was confused but a light shown into my eyes, first one then the other.“Patient’s pupils are reacting to stimuli. ETA five minutes.” The distant voice above me said “Hang in there kid. You’ll be all right.” Fairly soon a door opened to my left and I was taken from the confined space. It was only when I was placed on a gurney that I realised that
It was one of my darkest days yet when I found out that I seemed to be paralysed from the waist down. I had them turn the radio off for the first time in days. I lay in my quiet room and sulked for a couple of days. The visitors didn’t know what to do with me. Things changed after a few days. I started having prickling sensations in my right foot. I couldn’t feel a lot but the doctors where very pleased that the sensation was starting to return to my foot. Then my left leg started to cramp and spasm. The doctors told me it was a good thing, even though the pain almost became unbearable. It was only when I could no longer sleep from the pain that I allowed them to give me pain killers a
The weeks flew by and before I knew it, the wedding day was upon us. My parents argued for days before the wedding but I was getting stronger each day so my father gave in to my mother’s wishes and we went to the wedding.I refused to put on a suit for the wedding so instead I wore jeans and a new button up shirt my mother had bought for the occasion. She made me wear black lace ups instead of the boots I usually wore.I got the surprise of my life when we got to the church though. The groom and the best men stood outside decked out in their t
The room was dark and quiet, with only the sounds from outside the room dimly filtering in through the closed door. The burning sensation had eased into a dull ache. I closed my eyes again and tried to sleep, wondering how long I had been in that bed. I head the squeak of the door hinges and opened my eyes again.It was only a nurse who came to check on me.“Nurse.” I said hoarsely and t
The first week was most definitely the hardest. I went from walking on crutches to taking ten steps using only the therapist as support. It felt like baby steps but I kept on trying, and soon I was walking on my own. It was a joyous moment the first time four weeks later when I stood up from my wheelchair and walked across the room without falling. I grinned at the therapist who was clapping for me. “Thank you.” I said to her, walked back to her and gave her an enormous hug.
I went back to school on the fourth day after I got out of the hospital. It was a Tuesday, but it really wasn’t one of the best days. It was cold and cloudy, with a chilly wind bringing in extra cold. I wore the extra layers of the uniform and included a long sleeve t shirt under all that. I grinned and thought of the long johns under the trousers.I had both straps on my shoulders. I had the spinal support on under my clothing but I really didn’t want to take any chances. I heard running footsteps and turned just as George and Charlie both tried to grab the bag off my back.
My parents did not ask any questions when I left home. I packed an overnight bag and put it in my car before going back to the house and learning the songs I had been asked to do. I got Girl Crush down that afternoon but The What Ifs song was nagging at me. I tried until Miss Preston called to tell me she was home. I packed up my laptop and stuffed my earphones and guitar into the trunk. I went in to tell my parents I was going out and left the house. I drove across town to get to Miss Preston’s house. She lived in a rather large house, white washed on the outside and an enormous garden that went around the house from what I could tell.
We left the clinic early that evening, feeling elated. I was nearly drunk from the excitement. I walked into the house with a grin.“I assume things went well?” my father asked as soon as he saw me.“Dad, the song is almost perfect. Now, Geraldine said she is going to organise some kind of show, get the publics’ feelings then we are going to record it and send it to the sponsors, see if we can get piece of the action.’ I said excitedly.My mother came in and asked
The exams did not go too badly. But I have to say, my focus wasn’t solely on the exams, it was with the show that we were putting on. Geraldine was right about the orchestra. The conductor was a relatively young man, mid-thirties slightly balding, but he had a lanky frame. He was very kind and patient man, showing an obvious interest in what we were doing.I had met him in the reception area to have a chat while the orchestra went to set up in the room. He introduced himself as Roy Brown and we hit it right off from the start.
Geraldine and Brandy were waiting for me at the clinic. I greeted them and started taking everything out of the car. They were more than willing to help me get everything, including the six-pack of beer, into the music room. When I had everything connected and settled I gave them an expectant look and said“Thank you for your assistance, you may go now.” Brandy gave me a confused look and said“Surely you don’t expect us to eave you here? It would be more interesting to see how you wor
Time flew by that week. I had three places where I could be. At the clinic with Brandy or Joanie, who took turns to give me the exercises, at school writing my exams, or at home studying. By the weekend I was desperate to go out, just relax with someone who wasn’t involved with either the band, my studying or my health. The only option I had was either a drink or another tattoo, but I didn’t have the money for either. It was frustrating for me. When I was in that kind of mood in my own house I’d just lock the doors and hide my car in the garage, pretend I wasn’t home. The unfortunate thing about my current
Lara dropped me off at home at midday. I refused to go home with Carol and Gwen. Lara went in with me, spoke to my parents, and explained what had happened and then she left. My father allowed me two hours of sleep before waking me up to study again.I drove myself to school on Monday morning to sit through the two and a half-hour physics exam. It wasn’t too bad and I thought I had done really well. After school, I drove to the clinic for some exercise and spend some time in the pool. My back was starting to feel really good and I thought of dropping the physio but Brandy emphasising another two weeks. Things were not as awk
We had four acoustic guitars and we were ready to use them. Juan usually played the bass guitar but he was more than capable of playing the acoustic. Tom used his drum sticks to tap the beat out on the edge of the truck.“Ready?” I asked them and just started playing random chords. “Hang in there Andy! What are you playing?” Claude asked confused, trying to watch my fingers.“Nothing mate.” I laughed at him.
Turned out, my old boss did not mind at all. We set up outside the bar and made music. Geraldine’s band laughed at us the first ten minutes, until we got the cops called on us. Lucky for us, Tom had a friend in the department, so instead of locking us up, they closed a couple of streets, turning the road in front of the bar into one massive street party.It was nearing eight pm when I ran out of ideas and called for requests. The craziest thing happened when people called for things like 500 Miles and Thunder from Imagine Dragons. We tried to play the songs, as best we could.
I slowly walked through the hall, ignoring the calls from Joanie. Brandy was very quiet. I pushed into the music room. The band stopped playing immediately and stared at me as I limped inside.“You lot are out of tune, off-beat and are making a mess out of a damned good song.” I commented drily.“Well, that is why we need your input, are you ready for it?” Geraldine Jones stood up from her chair and walked towards me.
The alarm went off at six-thirty the next morning. I almost jumped out of bed and got my things together. I had my shower then went to the kitchen to join my parents for breakfast.“You’re up early.” My father commented over his cup of coffee.“Yeah, I want to get an early start. Doc said she’ll be there at seven-thirty so that I can get in before the first patient.” I replied with a smile.