My Fall - How I Got the Name, Freeflyinglady

In September of 2006, I went to Santa Fe for a Watercolor Self Expression workshop. On the third day we visited Ghost Ranch where Georgia O'Keefe had done many of her paintings. We painted the surrounding landscape, sat though a thunder storm, and then left for the day. On the way home it was suggested that we take a detour to see some petroglyphs. It was necessay to climb a steep trail to see the carvings. On the way up, I stepped a little to the left to avoid a large cactus. The soil was soft from the rain. When I place my foot down, the earth gave way, and I went tumbling down the 200 foot embankment. I rolled over and over and just before I landed in a drainage ditch, my back landed on a huge rock. As I lay in the wet ditch, I was sure I had broken my back. I just lay there face down trying to catch my breath. Several of the ladies in our group rushed over to me. I just lay still, but after awhile I was able to get myself to a sitting position. My shoulder was killing me as well as my lower rib cage. My instuctor and my friend, Sue, drove me to the ER in Santa Fe. After x-rays were taken, the doctor determined that nothing was broken - just painful contusions. He gave me a prescription for a pain killer and a mild sleeping pill.

There's more to the story which I will relate at another time. The next morning at breakfast, we all decided that Freeflyinglady would be my new nickname. Oh, the painting is my emotional interpretation to my fall.