July 15, 1998

On July 15, 1998, I spent my day chez my friend David Christensen. I think all of my family was at work, so my mom didn't want me to be home alone all day. I remember David's mom, Chantelle, had set up a slip-n-slide in the back yard. David's little sister Shae(lene) was wearing a bikini, and I remember there being a discussion that she couldn't wear it in public. Chantelle had made macaroni and cheese for all of us kids there (her own, me, and I think some neighbor kids, the Plowmans). I remember sitting on a chair in the backyard with no shirt on, since I had just done the slip-n-slide, my fat belly glistening in the sun for everyone to see.

Shae had a birthday party to go to at Classic Skating in Bountiful. I didn't want to skate, so I think I was talking with David about how we could just wait and play with the Veggie Friend Seedies I owned: Corny on the Cob, Charles Broccoli, and Cabby Cabbage. But Chantelle wouldn't allow that. We showed up to Classic Skating and I was dismayed by signs that said everyone had to have skates. I had never had any kind of wheels beneath my feet, so I was quite nervous. And rightly so.

I put my skates on (they were roller skates, not roller blades) and made my way to the rink. I fell down once, but I got back up again. I fell down again, and I didn't get up.

My leg hurt really bad. When I tried to move it, it hurt even worse. Chantelle would periodically come over and tell me that I needed to get up, that someone was going to run over me. But I found that unlikely, since I wasn't even close to the rink; I was still on the carpeted area. I kept telling her it hurt too much to get up. She told me it was probably just bruised, that bruises can really hurt. But I knew there was no way that my leg was simply bruised; it at least had to be sprained. At one point I said, "When I fell, I heard a pop." But I didn't really think much of the pop.

Eventually we left, and Paul Chavez, a fellow ward member, picked me up and carried me out to Chantelle's van. I felt bad for him, since he had to carry me, an overweight nine-year-old. When we got back to the Christensens', David and Chantelle helped me hobble to the couch in their basement. Chantelle let us watch a movie, and David picked The Swiss Family Robinson. Later I woke up and the movie was over; they told me I had fallen asleep during the movie. My mom arrived and she, Chantelle, and David all helped me to my mom's car. My mom took me to Instacare, where I had x-rays taken and my leg was veritably broken--a small (but complete) break in the fibula, near the knee, and a spiral fracture on the tibia, near the ankle. My mom told me that the fact that I had fallen asleep at the Christensens' house indicated to her that I probably broke it.

Then we went to the emergency room at Primary Children's Hospital. I remember being in the waiting room for a really long time, wondering why it was taking so long, and my mom explained that people with more severe injuries would get to go in first. I can't remember whether she asked if there was something I wanted, but I did tell my mom that I wanted the remainder of the Veggie Friend Seedies. She told me that she would even let me have the Moy Mushroom she had already purchased, despite my room not being clean. I said, "You mean it's not a bribe anymore!?" For some reason, my mom was across the room (at the front desk) when she told me that, so one of the receptionists heard my response and found it quite funny, and I was embarrassed. My mom called Susanne and gave her the task of buying movies for me. I wanted the Wallace and Gromit movies, and I did eventually get them, but I think that night my sister couldn't find them, so instead she got me the Olsen twin movie It Takes Two, a Disney Sing-Along, and another video (but sadly I can't remember what!).

I was given a splint (one that would cause me grief over the next few days) and was sent home. I slept downstairs on our whitish couch. It was a long night. I ended up soiling Cabby Cabbage. My mom cut the tag off and soaked it in a container of a solution of soap and/or vinegar. I remember my mom emailing my grandparents, who were on a mission in Samoa. She had to go to school the next day (she taught at a year-round school), and I felt guilty that she had such little sleep on account of me.

I have fond memories of the summer that ensued. But those will have to wait for another day.