I went out running on Tuesday morning and ended up tripping and falling. About three weeks earlier, a friend had also fallen while out on a run, and she ended up breaking her elbow. She was in training for a 13 mile obstacle course, and so her fall made her have to withdraw from the course. That’s always a big disappointment. But, I remember wondering how it was that she had fallen. Since I had never fallen during a run, I couldn’t imagine why anyone would, unless there was ice on the road or something. But falls happen. After experiencing this fall, I went into a lot of thought about it. And I started realizing there was a sort of “anatomy” to a fall (or at least my fall), that provided me with some life lessons.

You Fall When You Are Not Prepared
That morning, I woke up very thirsty. I was dehydrated. I drank some water, but I know I didn’t drink enough given the fact that I was thirsty. I considered drinking more, but that would have disrupted my normal routine in the morning, so I decided not to. This was my first mistake. I know better than to go out on a 70 minute run without adequately hydrating myself. But I underestimated how dehydrated I really was, and I assumed I would be okay. The entire run leading up to the fall, I was thirsty. I fell when I had about 20 minutes left to run, so by then, I was probably even more dehydrated than when I started. Consequently, I was not lifting my legs and feet high enough, so that when I passed over a part of the sidewalk that was jutting out, my foot caught on it.

It is also true in life, that when we do something that we are not prepared for, unless we are just lucky (or a natural at whatever it is), we will end up failing, or “falling.” Usually, when I don’t plan and prepare well for something, I underestimate the activity or I overestimate my own limitations. So what I learned from this part of the fall, is the importance of planning and preparing properly. Don’t cut corners to save time or money. I knew I needed more water, but I didn’t want to change my routine or take the time to drink more water.

When You Fall, You Fall Alone
You know how when, if you are entering a fall or a car accident or something of this nature, it’s like your mind is wide open to receive all of your thoughts? In your mind, it’s like time slows down and there’s this great clarity, and you are able to listen to much more than you would if you were just sitting at a desk. That happened to me in this fall. I was running with my fiancé, Brad, and I remember thinking when I first started falling, “why doesn’t he catch me?” Obviously, it happened too quickly for him to do anything about it. But as I looked back on my thoughts, I found it interesting that the first thing I would think is for someone to catch me. Someone to break my fall. Unfortunately, that’s not always going to happen. I especially should realize, that if I set myself up for a fall (i.e. if I am not prepared), then I better realize there may not be anyone there to break my fall. Brad helped me after the fact, of course. But he couldn’t help me in the midst of my fall.

It is also true in life, that when you go through something traumatic, while it helps to have people around you, ultimately, in the midst of that fall, you are in it alone. Unless you have faith in God. There is no physical person who can really “be” with you in the midst of your fall. But God is spirit. And if you know him, then he is in you. And he is the only one who can really “be” with you in the midst of your fall.

Life Lessons Lessen the Impact of the Fall
There were two other thoughts I had immediately before hitting the pavement and the instant I hit the pavement. The first was the memory of the friend I told you about earlier. She broke a bone. I didn’t want that to happen to me. And I had just an instant to think of how to avoid breaking a bone. Just as my hands (which instinctively shot out to break my fall) hit the pavement, my mind said, “roll!” And so I rolled to my right side. Many people break a wrist when they fall because of the impact of the cement on their bones. I had often heard that if you try to roll when you fall, you are less likely to break your wrist or arm. I’m not sure if it’s true, but I’m glad my brain thought of this and acted accordingly.

In life, sometimes our “falls” take more than the second or two that it took me to fall to the pavement. Sometimes you know you are starting to fall. And isn’t it true in these situations, that we should think about those who have fallen before us, and what they did or didn’t do that caused them more harm, or lessened their harm? And if we act accordingly, while we still might “hit the pavement,” if we learn from others who have also fallen, it can lessen the pain for us. This is also why it is so important to listen to others who have experience. Listen and ask questions. Consider what they have said. This is also why it is so important not to always hide your failings. It is good to talk about our failures as well as our successes so that others can learn from them.

It’s Not As Bad As You Might First Think
As soon as I fell, I lay there in pain from the impact. I immediately started “scanning” the pain sensations, hoping, hoping, hoping that none of them were broken bones. I must have jabbed my rib area with my arm and elbow, because at first the pain in and around my ribs made me think I had broken a rib or two. But the pain didn’t escalate, and I could move everything. So I stood up. Brad said I should run it off if I didn’t feel like I had broken anything. So after walking a bit to make sure, I started running again. Soon, I was certain no serious injury had occurred. And though later I inspected myself and found some bruising, and I was (and still am) in some muscular pain, I didn’t break any bones—not even my ribs like I first thought I had.

I remember feeling like I was flying through the air, but I wasn’t. I just fell down. And I got up, virtually unharmed. In life, sometimes we think our falls are tremendous. Sometimes we think they are going to ruin us, or mar us in some negative way. But if we just get back up as soon as we can, we will sooner realize that it wasn’t so bad as we first thought. We might have some bruising, some soreness, and even if we break something, it will likely heal. But we are human, and humans are astoundingly resilient. You are astoundingly resilient.

So what are you waiting for? Get back up, get prepared, and keep going.