Time marches on

Two years ago today I got all my chores done and set off to the Pie Shop for lunch and a coffee. I didn’t make it. A semi-trailer on my side of the road interrupted my ride about a third of the way up Macquarie Pass and landed me in hospital with multiple fractures and a protracted recuperation that is still incomplete.

What have I learnt in these two years?

1. Your family is the most important thing. Absolutely top of the list. Without the support and encouragement of my wife and children I most certainly would not be where I am today.

2. Motorcyclists are the best mates. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Nobody, but NOBODY looks after their mates like motorcyclists do.

3. The human body is a remarkable resilient organism. Despite the frightening injuries that I received in the accident, the body’s ability to heal and regenerate itself continues to amaze me.

4. The human mind is an equally remarkable and durable thing. Despite the horror of the accident and the fear and loathing that followed it, time has healed the mental scars.

5. There is always somebody who is worse off than you. This realisation is one of the most important things to grasp as it helps you to not become obsessed with your own misfortune.

6. With sufficient will and the help of others, even a disabled person can achieve amazing things.

7. “Patience” and “patient” are both from the same root word.

8. Good can come out of bad and it usually does, one just has to be perceptive enough to recognise it.

9. Humour is an essential part of recovery.

and, most importantly,

10. Life is precious. You always know that but you don’t really know it until you have gone close to not having it.

I’d like to thank all my readers who have, in varying degrees, helped me on the way from invalidity to mobility. Your encouragement and belief means more to me than I can ever say.