Cool Injuries by Michelle Huster

Every Monday night Jim and I lead a Bible study in Mission Hills with some really cool singles. We are the only married couple and these guys and gals lead some really interesting lives. They have such a heart for Jesus and it inspires me in my walk with Him.

Jim has an "ice breaker" every week to get to know everyone's name. He goes around the room and has them introduce themselves and state their favorite food, sport, etc... This past week the item was your worst injury.

Now on a side note, many of you may be thinking that is a little sick but let me give you some background about Jim's family. I love to get together will all the Husters (His dad Richard and step-mom Pen and all six siblings). They tell stories about the past which are quite hilarious about trips taken etc... One thing I found out early on when I married into the Huster family is that they have high pain thresholds and really don't think your that "bad off" unless there are bones protruding and gushing blood. The Huster motto is, "Just rub some dirt on it." One time Tasha dove into the pool and hit a float and hurt her neck. She complained for a few days and finally her dad took her to have an x-ray. (He's an orthopaedic surgeon) It was broken!

Not only does the current generation of Husters exhibit this amazing tolerance for pain, this kind of toughness goes back a generation as Grandmother Huster had a pretty bad injury with her hip and didn't care to ride in an ambulance but preferred to ride in a car and just be seen in Richard's office. She went home that day and did great! At least Richard and Pen saved on doctor fees because Richard was able to treat most injuries and Pen is also an RN.

Don't get me wrong, they took wonderful care of their children and parents! The stories are so funny to hear about and each sibling and even the parents have their full share of injuries to tell from skiing accidents, skateboarding, bee stings on the lips and hornets from the garage, getting hit with a golf club by grandchildren, broken arms, broken legs while having to raft down the Colorado River, fingers, toes, ankles, hips, necks, road rash, etc... Really the family is quite athletic and so the more you play, the more chances of accidents can occur. Ken is known in the family as the most daring! I was the safe and cautious one so these tales really intrigue me. Faith has inherited my cautiousness while Isaac has no fear and had staples in his scalp by age1.

So this leads me back to Bible study. As we went around the room people told of skateboard injuries, shark attacks, broken backs, cracked skulls, you name it, and someone had experienced it. Then it was my turn to share. I knew just the injury that had been the worst for me. As everyone got quiet and listened to my injury, I said proudly, "A broken tail bone during child birth." The group went wild!!! None of them had ever experienced child birth but knew it was painful and many had shared breaking a tail bone and how horrible it was. All the tough guys soon claimed me as the "Champion!" I felt quite good about my accomplishment. It is hard to impress surfers, rock climbers, sky divers, etc... I know the Huster family would be proud that one of their own won out on the worst injury and became the coolest of the group if only for a moment!