Chapter 7: Religious—an Interlude

The Calling

She wasn’t particularly mystical or spiritual. She’d dabbled in all the things children do. Séance, Ouija Board, Sunday School, Yoga. She’d enjoyed them for a while but they didn’t really do anything for her. She preferred things she could see and read. She wanted to live life to the fullest—experience everything.

That may have led her to being a little more adventurous and even impetuous than her contemporaries. If there was a tree to be climbed, she climbed it. She dove into the river from the railroad bridge. She rode her bicycle down the steepest hill in town trying to top fifty miles an hour before she had to brake to make the curve at the bottom. Whatever the activity, she did the most daring part of it.

Until the day Deborah almost died.

Deborah was almost as daring as Hana was. It was while the two were in the skate park that Deborah tried to copy her back flip and fell short of the full revolution. She was horrified at seeing her best friend lying on the concrete, unmoving.

But Hana Ito was not stupid or slow to act. She called for someone to get help and then knelt beside her friend. She quickly checked to see that she was still breathing and had a pulse. She fought the urge to straighten the injured body and instead tried to rouse the unconscious girl. Deborah opened eyes, soon filled with tears.

“Owww! It hurts!”

“Deb, honey, don’t move. We need to be sure you don’t injure yourself further. You’ve had a bad accident but don’t worry, I’m here with you. Now do what I say. Can you take a deep breath?”

“Yes. Ow. Hana, that hurts. What’s wrong.”

“It’s just a guess, but I’d say probably a broken rib. Now, can you wiggle your toes?”

“How can I wiggle my toes in skate boots? That’s dumb.”

“Okay. I’m going to take your skates off. You’ll need them off when the ambulance gets here.” Hana went to work loosening the boots completely before she gently pulled them from her friend with as little movement as possible. She tickled her right foot. Deborah reflexively pulled her toes back. “Good. You can move your toes. Don’t do it again. We want to make sure you stay still.” She carefully removed the other boot.

“My arm hurts.”

“That doesn’t surprise me. You used it to try to break your fall. Unfortunately, you still hit your head. Your arm is probably broken. It will be okay. People break bones every day. It will heal quickly. I’m more concerned about your concussion and want to make sure nothing in your back is hurt.”

“My neck hurts. Hana?”

“I’m here with you, Deb. I won’t leave you. I can hear a siren now. Help is coming. I know it hurts, honey. Stay with me. They’ll know exactly what to do. I’ll tell them what I found out. They’ll take care of you. Stay with me. You shouldn’t go to sleep right after hitting your head. Tell me what you were trying to do.”

“I wanted to do the backflip you did. I did it on the flat. It should have been easier on the ramp.”

“You didn’t get all the way around.” Hana closed her eyes with her hands touching her friend. Heal. I send you all the healing energy you need. Heal and get up and walk. Of course, nothing happened. People didn’t get healed that way. People got healed because they went to doctors and doctors set the bones, operated on bad parts, and prescribed medicine. If she wanted to heal someone, she needed to become a doctor. “Here they are.” medics rushed from the ambulance. “She has a concussion and broken right arm. She has feeling in her feet and can wiggle her toes. I think there is a broken rib where she landed on her hand.”

“Okay, Miss. Just step aside and let us do an evaluation. Harvey! Back board. These skate parks are way too dangerous. They should pass a law against them. Now, what’s your name, little miss?”

“Deborah. What’s your name?”

“What a good question, Deborah. I’m Ralph. This man beside you with the long board is Harvey. We don’t think you have a spinal injury since you can feel and operate your extremities but we don’t want you jostled around any more than necessary. So, we’re going to slide the board under you and then lift you up to go to the hospital.”

“Ow ow ow ow!”

“You’ll be okay. That’s all the moving you need to do. We’re just putting on your safety belt now and then you go for a ride. Ready? Here we go.”