Bike Business

My husband is darling. In every way. Sometimes I am just at a loss when I wonder how in the world I ever got picked to be Mrs. Ross Campbell. I have many more blog posts from the week buzzing in my head, but can not type a thing until I do this one.

A year ago our school hosted a rummage sale. I stumbled upon 2 used bikes for kids. They were so cheap, it was worth the risk that the brakes might not even work. CC tinkered with them. One of them has turned out to be a super bike. What it did, though, is spark a thought in CC's mind about bike riding. We live a 5 minute walk from a beautiful wilderness with trails. On top of that, we discovered a new French mega-sporting goods store had opened. The prices are great. The selection is extensive, including a big bike section. And so he began his pursuit of a bike hobby. In his free time, he read the internet. He learned the advantages of V-brakes and disc brakes. He began throwing around terms like LBS, which I later discovered was biker lingo for Local Bike Shop. Finally, he analyzed which bike he wanted, and at 43 years old, he got a mountain bike. It has been so good for him. Running an international school in our setting can be stressful, this has been the perfect de-stressor for him. He's taken a couple of spills. The hills and mountains surrounding us are rugged.

But yesterday topped them all. I got a call at 12:30, but didn't hear the phone because I was upstairs. At 12:56 I began wondering about him. I called him back. Something prompted me to say, "Honey, are you ok? Are you coming home?" He merely said, "I'm coming now, but it will be awhile before I am back." He was evidently deep in the trails. When he walked in the door, I saw this. My heart sank to my knees. Even more so than the bruised eye, the pale lips on my husband mean he is not doing well. He said something like, "I don't think I have a confession." (and he meant concussion.)

I immediately turned into Bossy Nurse mode for I was determined to get him to the hospital as soon as possible. He wanted to bathe and get off all the dirt in his wounds, which I realized were extensive. Most of the 'dirt' turned out to be burns. Shoulders, knees, forearms, face. Then he wanted to just 'rest.' I was afraid he'd fall asleep, with a concussion, and that I'd have no way to get him up and to the hospital without help. I started saying, "Up you go. Here's a t-shirt. Get it on!"

We drove on to the hospital. The Turks are so dear. They have a phrase for every major life event. They all kept saying,"Gecmis olsen." "May it pass quickly for you." The story of the accident kept unfolding as his mind became more clear. He evidently was totally out for some length of time. He doesn't really even remember how it happened, though he does remember his body skidding on the ground for a long time, as he was going pretty fast on his bike.  He doesn't remember taking off his helmet, gloves, sunglasses, and yet he somehow had. He had absolutely no idea what season it was, what day it was, where he was. As his mind started to come back to reality, he forced himself to list the kids' names and his SS number. And then he decided it was such a pretty day, he'd ride a little longer. I think it is pretty obvious he was in a state of shock. He wasn't even really feeling pain.

The doctor did a CAT scan. It came back clear, praise the Lord. The doctor made every effort to speak English to us. He said, "If he throws out, has consciousness, or sensory issues, return immediately." I assume that means "throwing up" and "has unconsciousness." (You have to laugh in times like this.) 

Every limb is torn up. They put skin glue above his eye to bond it back together. As the night went on, the swelling got worse. My poor baby.

And this morning, He's even worse. But whether he looks like the above photo or the one below...he's my one and only and I am so thankful God brought him home safely!