Creative Writing Now - Dear Doctor

You’re not going to believe this, but the strangest thing happened to me about a month ago.  I was down in Lake Powell with some friends and we were hanging out on the houseboat.   Out in the lake there was a tree that was growing out of the water.  My friends and I decided to go climb its branches and jump off into the water.

We each took turns climbing up the tree, which stuck about ten feet out of the water, and then doing some crazy trick into the water.  Jimmy did a killer swan dive, while Kate did a double back flip.  I wish I was as daring as them, but the best I could do was a cannon.  I used to dare to do flips and dives and all that crazy stuff, but the older I get the more afraid I am to try it. 

After about three or four jumps each my friends persuaded me to go one more time and do a front flip.  I was terrified, but I didn’t want to be teased for being a chicken.  So I swam back over the tree and started to climb.  When I got about eight feet up my foot slipped, I lost my hold and dropped out of the tree. 

As I plummeted back down to the water I tried to avoid hitting the branch below me.  Fortunately, my head barely missed it, but my back side hit it just as I was about to enter the water and gave me a huge gash across my left butt cheek.

I hit the water and the pain in my butt was awful.  My friends swam out to me to make sure I was okay. I assured them that I was fine, but the blood spilling from my bum gave me away.  We swam back to the house boat and I made everyone else get out before I did. When I came out of the water I reached back and there was a huge whole where my bathing suit got cut by the branch. 

John, my crush, is in medical school and offered to take a look at it.  I was mortified! He went to get the first aid kit as I quickly wrapped a towel around my waist.  When he came back we went up to the top deck of the boat where he examined my wound.  All I could think of while he was checking it and cleaning it was, “The cutest boy on the boat is looking at my bare bum.” I was so humiliated. 

When he had it all cleaned up and covered with a large Band-Aid he told me in his most professional sounding doctor voice that I should probably go and get the cut looked at.  He gave me a little wink as he cleaned up his supplies and headed back down to the main cabin.  I stood there for a few extra minutes to gain my composure and make sure my cheeks weren’t bright red before going down.

I decided that since we were in the middle of nowhere, I’d just take it easy and stay out of the water the last two days we were there.  Then I’d stop at a hospital on my way home.  That turned out to be the worst decision ever.  By the last day my bum was so sore, I couldn’t handle sitting on it or putting any pressure on it.  I basically laid on my stomach the entire day.

Kate and I stopped at the first hospital we came to on our way home.  The doctor took a look at it, said I had an infection and prescribed me some antibiotics.  It’s been a terrible ordeal and my bum is still not all the way back to normal.   I am still on antibiotics and that’s why I can’t get a flu shot today.