Monday, April 9, 2012

My Happy-Sad Finger.

Because I've been neglecting the blog for a month, this will be a quick update on life according to Dianna and her sad finger.

Finger Update...
This has been quite an adventure. After feeling very doubtful about the treatment I was given before spring break, I went to a hand specialist in Birmingham while I was home. He told me that not only should I have had a completely different cast on, but that I shouldn't have been moving my finger at all. Here I was wearing a weak, cheap splint and doing finger exercises multiple times a day when I should have been treating the break in the bone and stabilizing the finger.
Anyway, I got a new splint and was told to go to physical therapy after I hit the 6 weeks-since-my-injury mark.
I am currently in my second week of PT. I was told today that I'm making great progress and I'll probably be completely out of the cast/splint/brace in 4-6 weeks. It's still a long time, but I'm glad to be making progress. I've still got a long road ahead, but I'm thankful for the treatment I've received at PT so far; it has definitely been an answered prayer.


Because of the finger, I had to pull out of my summer missions project. I was assigned to teach ESL in Queens (NYC) and shortly after had to withdraw my missions application for the sake of my finger. It was a hard and disappointing decision to make, but I know that Auburn holds a lot of good for me this summer. This finger is playing a huge role in my summer missions work, which apparently is in Auburn, Alabama and not New York City.

I've been calling this my "sad finger" for a while. I've been learning that it is helping to make me more joyful and content. In the first few weeks after the injury, I depended on all of my friends to drive me around, help me carry things, etc, etc. This time was one spent in cars with people I normally didn't spend much time around, which resulted in growth of friendships (not to mention everyone now knows where I live). I have learned to let people help me out every once in a while and I have also been forced to slow down. Even the help I've needed through at-home PT has drawn me closer to one of the most important people in my life.

As a whole, I'm thankful for my sad finger. It ruined my summer missions plans in NYC. It is keeping me in Auburn this summer. It hurts most of the time. Nonetheless, my sad finger has helped contribute to a lot of my happiness over these past 2 months.


God works in mysterious ways.