My brace

 My most recent post was about how thankful I am that my scoliosis was detected early.  I am thankful every day that I was put in a brace at age 11.  Now I am going to write about some of the things I would rather forget.  My nieces are all starting to grow into wonderful young ladies now, but they are in those years that I think of as "the terrible years" .  You all know the years I am talking about..... Ages 11-15 give or take a few years.  The years you so desperately want to grow up but also deep down wish you weren't to big to cuddle with your mom.
  During those years every emotion is magnified times a hundred, because of hormones, but you don't really understand what hormones even are... You just feel awful.  You want to cry about everything but know full well you are much to grown up to cry.   I try to remember these feelings with my nieces and other young ladies and pray for them.
   My terrible years were also confusing because I also had a brace. My first brace was a Boston brace.  It started at my hips and went to my chest.  It rose a little higher in the back.  People couldn't tell it was there really, but my clothes all had to fit over it so I couldn't wear anything that was not really baggy.   I was already awkward, and I felt even more awkward with my brace.
    The second brace I was put in at age 13 was a Milwaukee brace.  The Milwaukee brace started at my hips and then had metal parts that went all the way to my chin.  There was no hiding the fact that I wore a brace.  Even when I wore a turtle neck the brace could still be seen jutting out through my clothes.   I have never been much for fashion, but during those years when everyone around you thinks what you wear and how you look is what matters I stuck out worse than a sore thumb.
  I once asked a camp counselor why God made me have scoliosis.  I don't even remember who that counselor that was, but I can remember her answer.  She said she didn't know.  She said God is so much bigger than our box we try to put Him in.  She said that she didn't know why I had scoliosis but God has a much bigger plan than right here and right now.  She said that trusting  the God who created everything is hard when we have struggles, but it easy when you try to think about how it would be on your own. She also shared James 1:1-2.  Which I memorized. She also said that some day I might see why scoliosis was a good thing for me.
  Today I can see the good, I work with people with disabilities.  My wearing a brace taught me patience.  I had to wear it 23 hours a day for four and a half years.  I also learned what it like to be judged because of a physical deformity. These things have helped me greatly in caring for the people I serve.  Could God have thought me those things in another way? Yes, he is God, he can do anything. Would I want him to? Absolutely not.  Even though those years were very difficult.  I learned so much and became the person I am today because of them.

How a dumb idea was good

  When I was a second grader I had a great idea to jump out of the barn loft.  It really didn't look to far down, and I was sure that everyone would think that they needed to be my friend if I jumped out.  Who wouldn't want to be friends with an acrobat?  So I jumped..... And I was awesome..... Until I hit the ground.  I somehow landed on my foot wrong.
   I didn't exactly break it, I injured my heal plate.  It hurt something awful.  I went on crutches.  So instead of being the incredible acrobat I had imagined, I got mocked for being a klutz.                        One good thing did come out of my injury though.  I from time to time would have reoccurring pain in my heal.  My mom finally took me to an orthopedic surgeon.  He looked at my heal and discovered my injury was close to the growth plate and that's why the pain would come and go.  As soon as I was done growing the pain would go away too.
    That wasn't the good thing though.... I went to this orthopedic surgeon when I wasn't even eleven years old yet.  He found something else, that was that I have scoliosis.  He diagnosed me two years before the school screening. I had really early detection which allowed me to go into a brace that much earlier.  My scoliosis was progressive and I truly believe that getting into the brace that early was the reason I avoided surgery.  So see my idea to jump out of the barn loft was a great one!

Saying goodbye to my childhood home

Last week I helped my mom pack up the house that I grew up in. She has finally moved and I have had o lot of emotions about it.  It was like saying goodbye to an old friend.
  I have many memories of that old place, but truly I will miss the field more than anything.  I spent just about every day in that old field, walking around the rock pile, walking stick in my hand.   I would pretend I was a great explorer discovering new mountains.  My faithful companion my cat Garfield was always at my side.  In that field I saw my first shooting star and my first moon eclipse.  The field is why I love outdoors, prairie stories, and astronomy.
  It was hard to say good bye, but a nice young couple bought the house and they are expecting their first baby.  Maybe it will be a girl.  Maybe they will get an orange cat and the little girl will learn to love outdoors as much as me.  Or maybe they will have their own great memories in that old house and field.

My blog

I have decided to start a blog.  The title of my blog may seem strange to some of you, but it describes a few things that I may post about.   I have Scoliosis.  That is where the crooked part comes in.  I will write about the trials and tribulations of my dealing with this.  The backpacker part is my hobby.  I love backpacking and nature and hammock camping as well, so many posts will be about that.   I am also a Christian.  I will not apologize for the fact that God or God's glory may show up in my posts.  Its because of Him that I am who I am.  Other things that I may post about are ADHD and whatever is on my mind from one day to the next.  I think its best to just write an introductory post to start with.  If you have any questions I encourage comments and feed back so feel free to comment!