Getting the Last Word III: Part 1/25

As you probably know, I typically write about sports, humor, and parenting on Medium. But as I enter my third year as a writer on this platform, I have decided to do something a little different. Sounds fun, right?

I have discovered a list of more than 1,800 writing prompts on the Reedsy Web site. I plan to answer 25 of the prompts during a span of 25 separate articles. Although I already have my hands full with writing two long-term series on Medium — “Today’s Rant” and “The Parenting Tales of Teo” — you can think of this new project as a short miniseries intended to be spontaneous and impromptu. So, let us get started!

Writing Prompt No. 1: Write about a time when you helped someone.

My wife (then-girlfriend), Kay, traveled to El Salvador in the fall of 2018 for a week-long law school internship.

Although we had only become a couple a short time before the trip, I naturally missed her during her absence. Hence, we agreed to meet for dinner the day after she returned to the San Francisco Bay Area, where we lived at the time. After all, I was excited to hear about her experiences in El Salvador.

As we were exiting her apartment for date night, her foot landed awkwardly on the sidewalk, and she twisted her ankle. She initially assured me she was okay. Thus, we had dinner as planned and then I dropped her off at her apartment before I headed home.

However, the swelling and pain in her ankle became significantly worse the next day. She phoned that morning and asked me to drive her to the nearest emergency room to have her injury treated. I agreed and brought her promptly to the hospital.

Although I had a class scheduled to take place that afternoon, I naturally skipped it and sat with her in the emergency room. We held hands as we waited for the doctor to come. We also cuddled, talked and laughed, which helped to distract her from the physical pain of her injury and anxiety of being in a hospital.

She was eventually treated and released from the hospital the same day. She recovered quickly, just in time to celebrate Halloween, her favorite holiday. After we distributed candy to trick-or-treaters, we watched television, ordered pizza, and relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Even all of these years later, thinking about this incident always makes me smile. While there is nothing humorous about her injury, it had turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It cemented our bond with one another. Created a deep level of trust in one another. Most importantly, it was the first step in establishing a lifelong commitment to one another, although we were unaware of it at the time.

Although I had only known her for a short time, I realized something important as we sat together in the emergency room — I loved being with her. Any place. Any time. Under any circumstance. Even in a hospital.

This incident in return helped her to gain confidence in me. She had moved by herself to the Bay Area only a short time earlier. Almost all of her family lived 375 away in Southern California and she had only befriended a small number of classmates. After our hospital visit, she realized she had someone nearby to support her through thick and thin.

We have built a beautiful life together with our son, Mateo, in the five years since this incident. My decision to help her that day changed our destiny forever in a positive way. Everything happens for a reason, an adage that could not be truer.

Write about a time when you helped someone.