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An Unexpected Start (2)
When Tom's phone alarm went off, his immediate impulse was to hit snooze. It had been four hours since his alarm woke him up, and he would need to wake up in another four to start her morning routine. He pulled himself out of bed and watched Jennifer sleep peacefully. He knew that he was about to wake her up--she never slept through her position changes--and he hesitated for a minute, knowing that she was likely dreaming about going for a run or cooking his favorite meal. Jennifer once confided in him that in the six months since the accident that left her paralyzed from the shoulders down, she always dreams in her able-bodied form. They had been home for two weeks now, and the adjustment had been hard for both of them. Tom was still deeply in love with Jennifer, and there was no universe where he would ever leave her side. He believed her to be the most beautiful woman in the world the day he proposed to her from the top of a hill they hiked together, and now he still thinks she'sLiteratureAn Unexpected Start
To say the first six months of my marriage were far from what I imagined would be an egregious understatement. The wedding was perfect. I walked down the aisle, stood face-to-face with the man who would in just moments become my husband. We said our vows, were declared man and wife, and then he lifted me in his arms and carried me down the aisle. I didn't know then that it would be the last time he carried me in his arms as a purely romantic gesture and not out of practical necessity. I also didn't know that when I changed out of my wedding dress into the evening gown I had picked out for the reception that it would be the last time I would lift my arms over my head and use my fingers to pull a dress down over my own body, the last time I would bend down and use my hands to slide shoes on my feet planted firmly on the ground. I didn't know that our first dance as a married couple would be our last. The wedding day was perfect, but the date will always be marred. Our weddingLiteratureAn Unexpected Start (3)
Jennifer had never fully grasped how disabled she looked until she saw herself in the full length mirror. She didn't even look like she was sitting in her wheelchair--sitting was too active of a verb to adequately describe her position. Rather, she was propped in her chair, lateral supports hugging her at the sides and a horizontal chest strap across her middle, just under her breastbone. Her arms lay flat in armrests that were contoured so they couldn't fall out. She hated everything about the way she looked in the mirror. As if reading her mind, Tom walked over to her from across the room and planted a kiss on the top of her head. "You look stunning," he whispered. He stood back up and Jennifer watched him from the mirror. He stood behind her buttoning his work shirt. Jennifer felt guilty for the jealousy that overcame her as she watched Tom's fingers move over each button, a fine motor skill that was so far out of reach for her who couldn't even sit up unsupported, who had to beLiteratureAn Unexpected Start (4)
I never wanted to go to Tom's company's fundraising event, but I relented because it meant a lot to him, and after everything he's done for me these eight months post injury, could I really say no? Not that I didn't try to get out of it at first. I was sitting on the couch with Tom in the living room, as had become our nightly routine. He would transfer me out of the chair, make sure I was properly supported, and we would watch Netflix together. That's when he told me about the event, and my chest tightened with panic. "I don't know if I'm ready to go to that kind of party," I admitted. It would be a black-tie and formal dress occasion with a lot of mingling, which would mean a lot of stares in my direction. Sure, everyone at Tom's work knew about his wife, the aspiring veterinarian who was tragically hit by a distracted driver and is now paralyzed from the shoulders down. But they haven't seen me. In the four months that I've been home, I haven't gone many places except physical
