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Sunday, February 28, 2016

THANK YOU....and an Explanation

I am overwhelmed with the number of e-mails I've received saying how happy the person is that I started blogging again.  Thank you to all of you who take time out of your life to stop and read my blog posts.  You know, I tell myself crazy things like what I do isn't that important....until I hear someone tell me that when they were off of work due to an illness that my blog was the one thing they counted on each morning to make them smile.  I absolutely love writing my blog posts (unless I have to tangle with technology....then I want to break the bot).  My primary drive in life is to connect with other people in a meaningful way and exchange something about this process of being a human being.

Nothing makes me feel more alive than this exchange with another person.  The acknowledgement ....I see you and I care....and I'm excited to have the good fortune to have crossed paths with you.  This energy fuels everything for me.    It fills my tank and pulls me forward into a meaningful day.  It is all about the quality of the authenticity....not the circumstances in which we find ourselves.  

Now....you can imagine what happens to me when I'm isolated or I have lost someone who I have connected with in a powerful way....or when I come in prolonged contact with those who do not hold sacred the bond that is possible between human beings....my lights go dim. My life force energy can be so drained that I can no longer feel the light at the other end of the tunnel and there seems to be nothing pulling me forward.  

My higher power is that power which connects us one to another to the degree that I actually feel what I consider to be the golden strand that connects us each to the other.  I have been with people that just seem to radiate great energy and  that can fuel me for weeks and months.  The clearer and more authentic the interaction....the happier I am...even in the midst of what we humans consider darkness or negative experiences.

As I type....I'm starting to see that this probably won't be one blog post....so if you are one of those who prefers photos....ya better hit pinterest for your fix.

On October 12, 2013 I went to a embroidery guild meeting.  Afterwards there was a group of gals meeting at a restaurant for lunch, one I had never been to previously.  Having young children it wasn't often that I was able to get away on a Saturday for lunch so I was pleased to have the time to join them. 

Once inside the restaurant...I immediately noticed it was dark....sort of like a night club.  I told a gal at the front of the place that I was looking for a large group of ladies and she told me where to find them.  I entered the dining room and saw the girls gathered around a few tables that had been pushed together and  I walked in their direction.   I was happy......feeling good....not in a rush....just a good feeling about being able to connect with these ladies outside of guild meetings.

As I walked toward the table I noticed there was only one seat available at the back side of the table on the end.  I walked in that direction and as I walked behind one gal with a walker and turned the corner....everything came to an alarming halt.  I had absolutely no idea why on earth I was laying on the floor.  Shock....an out of body experience....what on earth....like a meteor came from outer space and knocked me to the ground.  Instantly I knew I needed a doctor and asked the ladies to get a doctor call 911....I need help and I need it right now.  My next awareness was the intense pain I felt at the bottom of my left leg...I pulled my leg up into the air holding it with both hands...and then I caught a glimpse of the problem...my left foot was no longer connected to my leg....it was now perpendicular.  Nausea was instantaneous followed by an intense feeling of panic and pain.  I asked someone to please get me something cold for my face....hoping to stay conscious....and to hold something up in front of my foot so I would not see that gruesome sight.

It wasn't until later that day while in the hospital did I learn that it was not a meteor at all....it had been some heavy beverage mats that had been folded up and placed on the dark carpeting very close to the end of the table I was going to be sitting at that had stopped me in my tracks.  Apparently the dining room where we were seated had previously not been open and they opened it because of the large group of ladies coming for lunch.   Who ever had cleaned the floors in front of the beverage station had removed the mats...stacked them on the carpeting and had not replaced the mats before the guests were seated.  Dark dining room, dark carpeting and dark mats that I could not see were the cause of this nightmare.

After reading this....every reasonable person I have met has told me that was an accident just waiting to happen.  Come to find out....the legal system in Michigan where the restaurant is located did not see this as an accident waiting to happen....they see it as an "open and obvious" situation where I did not take necessary care to assure my own safe passage.  

I will pause here...because this is definitely a situation that requires chapters.  I will conclude by sharing that I had to file a lawsuit to have my medical expenses and the expenses for my care covered.  As a result of that lawsuit the opposing attorney was reading my blog.  Once I learned this....my blog no longer felt like my place....it felt like a place where people who were attempting to find things about me to twist and turn to suit their story and I wasn't going to continue to be vulnerable.  I felt violated....yet at the same time...I know I'm a very open and honest person with nothing to hide...yet...I needed to feel safe and sharing my daily experiences didn't feel safe...so my blogging trickled down until I completely stopped posting all together.  The suit is now over and again I feel comfortable to return to sharing my experiences.

Choosing to Smile,
Kelly

 


29 comments:

  1. How absurd that the legal system didn't say that it was a no contest case and order payment. I hope you got a NICE settlement.

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  2. Terrible that you had to endure such an ordeal. I hope that your ankle/leg has healed properly. Thanks for sharing.

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  3. Sorry about all of that. It's really bad when someone can try to take away our safe place like that. Now that your foot is healed, the rest of you can start healing.

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  4. I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. I recently filled out a questionnaire about internet privacy and bloggers, and I have been thinking about situations like yours, where things you wrote years ago could be twisted and used against you. It scares me.

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  5. Oh, Kelly. I had no idea you were going through these legal horrors. Hope you are sailing into calmer, happier waters!


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  6. Oh, Kelly. I had no idea you were going through these legal horrors. Hope you are sailing into calmer, happier waters!


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  7. I'm glad this is behind you. Take the lessons and bloom!

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  8. I didn't realize that you had to go through this and my first thought was, the restaurant is liable, how they do not see that, is beyond me. Glad to see you back and thank you for sharing your story.

    Debbie

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  9. I for one are happy you are back and excited for you that the legal mess is over. Welcome back!

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  10. It always seems wrong to me when they try to not pay medical expenses. I could understand fighting unreasonable monetary demands, but this seems absurd. Glad things are improving for you. You have been missed.

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  11. I for one are happy you are back and excited for you that the legal mess is over. Welcome back!

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  12. I'm so glad to hear the legal battle is over, you've been through too much in the last few years. I hope blogging again will strengthen that golden cord for you. Talking always helps but the "no privacy" part of the internet is scary.

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  13. I can't imagine how violated you must have felt knowing that your blog was being read by someone who had ulterior motives. I'm glad that it is over and you are able to come back to the blogging world.

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  14. Now I understand your absence. I'm so sorry you've had to endure such physical and emotional trauma. Glad you're back with us now, and looking forward to reading your always entertaining posts.

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  15. Now I understand your absence. I'm so sorry you've had to endure such physical and emotional trauma. Glad you're back with us now, and looking forward to reading your always entertaining posts.

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  16. That would definitely feel like an out-of-body experience. The mats shouldn't have been there regardless. So glad you are back and sharing with us.

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  17. It's absolutely horrible that such an accident has happened to you and I'm soooo glad that you are better and no longer being spied upon. Back to being yourself and no longer having to self censor is a wonderful thing.

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  18. Kelly, I'm glad you are back. What a terrible ordeal. I know our legal and medical systems are so horrible. Sorry you had to go through all this. Glad you have survived and are now over that mountain.

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  19. I am so sorry that you had to go through that awful ordeal. I missed your blog posts and am so happy that you are back.

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  20. Michigan's "obvious" was obviously not obvious! Glad you are back. Did the foot heal well?

    Marjory

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  21. I thank the Lord that you are now in a better state. I had missed you & prayed that whatever was wrong would turn out OK. I agree with what you are saying about connecting with others & the strength, peace & happiness that comes from that. That lawyer robbed you of your supporters & sense of safety. I am so happy, for your sake, it is over. Have a very happy spring!

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  22. I'm so sorry that you had to good through this ordeal. Being hurt is bad enough without having to deal with a lawsuit *while* you're hurting! How sad that the restaurant owners didn't just step up and take care of you. That sort of accident is exactly what "liability" insurance is meant for. I'm glad you're back safe with us. :)

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  23. I know this has been a horrible ordeal for you and I am more than positive that you are glad that it is over. You are amazing and we are so glad to have your return to us.

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  24. I'm really sorry for all that you have had to deal with - it's bad enough to have an injury but then having to go through so many other hassles - just no fun! We REALLY need to go to Bali now.

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  25. Dayum. That sounds horrid. I understand for many the life often gets in the way as it does so for me and I figured that is what happened. But wow. This was more than I imagined and I am so sorry you endured not only pain and a period of healing but also a legal nightmare. :-( I am glad to see you back though.

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  26. Holy cow - Kelly - I'm so sorry you had to go through all that!!!! Of course the restaurant is liable, I've had enough friends who've gone through the legal system here [and gotten quite large settlements] but I'd never want to go through that myself...they'd better have paid your bills with something extra...dirty rats!!! I can understand your feeling that your blog wasn't safe suddenly, dear girl, that would give me the heebie-jeebies to know he was reading. Seems like nothing is sacred anymore!!!

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  27. That is just crazy for you and I'm glad to see you blogging again too. I look forward to seeing what you've been up to and revisiting the flamingos.

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More Later-Beth