30 May 2012

In Terms of Falling

My brother-in-law is a complicated man. We make each other nuts 75% of the time but after more than twenty years we are definitely siblings.

The wonderful thing about him is he is at his best when we are at our worst. He has a similar talent like Kevin for making me laugh at the worst moments.

Last week I couldn't manage going up the outside stairs. It was frustrating and a little embarrassing.  The night of my doctor appointment Kevin asked his brother to help me up the stairs.

First some details:
I am five foot three. Kevin is six feet tall.  His brother is two inches taller. I put an arm around each of them and I hopped up each stair while they boosted me.

This went well until physics kicked in. We reached the landing but the boys kept going toward the door.  The problem being that my feet couldn't reach the ground anymore.  I started laughing and couldn't say "Stop!" Finally as I started to slide off my brother they realized what happened and stopped.  "Man up." he says, right before stopping.

Once in the house the brother was sharing his experience with a broken ankle, what to think about,  how to do stuff. Brotherly advice.
He is a recovering alcoholic, sober twenty years. We were talking about what to do if I began to fall.  "Just remember: if you fall: don't spill the drink." It was the perfect image for me (child of alcoholics) to illustrate how to fling my body if I fall. I think of it if I stumble and laugh.

What would we do without brothers?

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