Warriors Break Their Fall...

I fell down my stairs the other day. I mean... like a fall that only exists in cartoons; a comical, cartoonish, cartwheel down a flight of hardwood. Ever the Warrior Woman I wasn’t taking this fall lying down! At every bump I grabbed for help, ripping carefully hung garland from the banister in my dive. By the time I reached bottom I was a tangle of branches, twinkle lights, and glitter. Omg...that hurt. Mattie was right behind me and all I could think was, “My god, she’s going to rib me so hard for this avalanche.”. We have an inside joke whenever we get hurt telling one another how “good that felt”. It began when we were the two woman moving crew for our home this summer. “Don’t be jealous Matt, but I just slid that rough finish wood table up my sweaty shin and took the first three layers of skin clean off...” *smile, smile* “don’t mean to brag mom, but when I opened the courtyard door it took my big toenail clear back...”. *chuckle, chuckle* We’d seriously laugh at how bad things hurt and shake it off with humor. The fall down the stairs didn’t feel so funny. First hit was the good ol elbow..that felt good because ever the overachiever I somehow managed to bang both those little bones; first the smaller, then the bigger...in rapid succession. As I grabbed for the banister to slow down the inevitable I watched ripped garland and lights fly with indignation...until I hit the tailbone. Yum. That’s a fun pain that knocks any thought from your head. Honestly at the bottom I wanted to cry but knew even that would hurt, so instead I rolled and told Mattie if she laughed she’d live to regret it. It was not even seven in the morning when this epic tumble took place so I asked Matt for five minutes alone. She sweetly followed me to my room where, still a little stunned, I laid on my side pulling knees to my chest, deciding what hurt most. Mattie rubbed my feet a little asking if I was going to be ok...”of course, I’m fine baby..I just need a second...”. About a minute later I couldn’t resist saying, “my god, that must have been funny to watch.”. She denied there was humor but with her dry wit observed, “man...you were not going to give into that fall. At every point I thought that was it but...be proud... you fought it all the way down.”. That’s when we both started to laugh. It’s so true, Warriors... I’ll even battle gravity if I must and that’s a law of nature. I might not be tougher than the earth’s gravitational pull but, by god, I’ll go down in a glittery, garland laced, fight with a twinkling light crown. I believe we fall. I believe we choose to lie flat or bounce. I believe we break our fall by grabbing the sparkles and lights...Always! xo✨🤸🏼‍♀️d