Fall prevention with a little added touch of irony

We had the monthly meeting of our senior's group at church yesterday. The speaker was my long-time friend Pat Colvin from NE Florida AHEC and she gave a very interesting and informative presentation on fall prevention. Did you know that falls are the leading cause of injury and death for older adults? But there are lots of ways to avoid and prevent them. You can improve your balance through exercise, especially ones like yoga and t'ai chi. You can utilize a check list to help make sure that your home is as safe and clear of falling hazards as possible. And you can use nifty gadgets to pick things up or to reach things on shelves rather than climbing or stooping to try to get them.

Pat had some stories about times she has fallen and I can relate because anyone who has known me for any length of time knows that I am uncoordinated and prone to tripping and falling myself. I have hurt myself falling off of curbs, tripping over uneven sidewalks and sometimes even over my own two feet. If I had thought of it I would have shared my most ironic falling story with them. I was attending a church conference at a very large church in Kansas City. They had a lovely gift shop in their lobby and being one to never miss a shopping opportunity of course I had to go in and look around. I found a lovely purse with a scripture on it - Psalm 46:5 paraphrased God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Very pretty khaki colored purse with peach trim, striped ribbon accent and a lovely bow. Now here comes the irony... I went outside and began looking for the van and the rest of my group and proceeded to trip right over a bump in the sidewalk, falling flat out into the parking lot. Clutching my bag. I still have that purse but I've been afraid to carry it ever since. Maybe I ought to sell it on ebay.