There is a lot of pain in the Worthy home today. I’m going to try and let you know what has been happening. I’m sure that I have told you in the past that my bride’s mother has been staying with us ever since Covid hit back in 2020. That is a challenge that I know many folks face as they watch their loved ones age. I would like to tell you that she is getting better, but she faces her own challenges everyday. Lorraine has to be the cook, washer woman and also take care of me.
I’ll tell you what happened that just about took our family out this past week and yes, I have put her to bed until tomorrow; I don’t know who will be our cook because we don’t frequent the local McDonald’s. Well, at least we don’t frequent them very much. We will figure out the food situation after she has had her hip fixed.
In addition, my beautiful bride is having a hard time because she wants to make sure everyone is happy. I have explained to her that she has had just about everything dumped on her and that I will do whatever I can to keep the wheels rolling in the Worthy household. Now she is going to the hospital on Jan. 20, where she will have hip replacement surgery. I am not a doctor, and even though we used to play doctor when we were younger, it isn’t a game anymore.
I don’t know how close I can get to her while she is under the knife, but you can be sure that I will be watching the doctor and reminding him that he had assured us that she will be fine. For some reason, I believe him. He has been wonderful in assuring Lorraine that she will actually feel much better and her legs won’t bother her as much as she has been suffering.
Even though it is a small thing now, we also had a problem the other day that caused the hair on the back of my neck to stand up. I’m sure I have in the past written about the canine member of our household. “Ranger” is our miniature Australian shepherd. He is just about the coolest dog I have ever had dealings with. I can tell you that if I had to choose between him and any other member of my family, he would be safe in my arms. He looks after his family and makes sure we are safe from any other canine interloper. However, there are other dangers that surround Ranger, especially when we take our daily walk. I watch him close and make sure there are no cars coming that might try to…well, let’s just say he is a small dog and even a tiny car could do terrible things to him.
Because of these reasons I have him on a lead always while we are walking down Fanoe Road. Most of the time we are assured the drivers watch out for him as well as the other dog owners. Most of the drivers watch out for the pets that are walked down that road. I take Ranger for a walk just about every day. I have him on a leather leash, but he is a curious little rascal. He has a bark that alerts the Gonzales Fire Department. However, he is of his own mind and it matters not whether there is a lead around his neck. If he wants to cross the road in front of a car, he will not look both ways. I was made aware of this the other day while we were discussing life lessons and other things.
Ranger was walking along with me and trying to learn to whistle to alert the other cars. Something must have frightened him because he pulled his head out of the lead I was holding and ran across the road. Can you imagine a tiny little dog running in front of a car? Who is at fault? Forget it, it doesn’t matter.
Ranger was free for a few seconds. So imagine a truck that was passing a little faster than usual pulled to the right to try and avoid and ran right over Ranger’s paw. I mean he ran over him but didn’t hit him. Ranger rolled over a little as the truck was moving out of the way and then a wonderful man stopped. I stood there for a second and watched Ranger look at me as he was pulled under the pickup. I started crying before I could even get to Ranger. I’m not a crier. I cried over too many men when I served in Vietnam. But I couldn’t stop myself. This was one of the worst moments I have experienced in a very long time.
I ran again, not caring where the truck was. When I reached Ranger, the truck driver was already out of his cab and was already kneeling and asking if Ranger was OK. I can’t remember exactly what was said, but we both looked at each other as the tears were flowing, the driver and I said in unison, “THANK YOU JESUS!” But then I had to face the next part. How do I tell Lorraine? I made the call for her to come and get us and as you can imagine she was scared.
As we brought Ranger home, we couldn’t believe that he showed no signs of pain. The next morning we took him to the vet and to her astonishment she found nothing broken. This was truly a MIRACLE. As for the kind man who was in the truck, he called to check on Ranger as we assured him that none of this was his fault. The moral of the story is…make sure you get the proper harness for your dog. We are blessed that we have done that and we still have our Ranger.
God Bless and Happy New Year.
