Ayúdeme

I’ve always known that I'd someday fall during a car transfer. It's an easy transfer and I knew I'd eventually get complacent. Well, yesterday was that day. I was done shopping and getting back into my car in South Jordan, it was really windy. I always park with the nose of my car facing down an incline becaus I don't use breaks on my wheelchair and the slope keeps the chair snug against the car when I'm transferring. But as I was halfway between the chair and the driver's seat, my chair began to roll backward! I don't know if the wind blew it or if I was positioned funny or what. My feet were still sitting on the foot bar and they were rolling away with the chair, making my knees bend at an awkward angle. My slide board had fallen off the wheelchair cushion and landed on the top of the small front caster wheel, but the other side was still on the driver's seat...barely! The slideboard wasn't a "bridge" anymore and it was a real "slide" going down into the pavement...or at least the funny metal bottom part of the wheelchair. I was holding myself up with both my hands on the driver's seat, but my tush was slowly sliding down the board! I couldn't use my arms to scoot me more into the car because if I picked one up, I'd fall for sure. I couldn't lean into the car anymore than I was because I was straining to maintain the angle my body was at and not fall anymore forward and out of the car. My wheelchair was slowly roling further and further away (I still don't know how that was because I was on an incline going down and forward!). My legs were twisting even more and I was most afraid of breaking my ankles because my feet were still resting on the wheelchair.

I couldn't move my head because I was afraid that any extra body movement would jar me enough to lose the loose hold that I had. But out of the corner of my eye I saw some people nearby and I started yelling for help. These two guys came rushing over and I was so glad- except they just stood there! I didn’t know what was going on, I couldn’t look at them because I couldn’t move my head or my hold would weaken, all I could see were their feet and I kept saying help me! Help me! Then out of nowhere, I said “Ayúdeme!” And those two guys moved so fast, it was crazy! The one grabbed the wheelchair and pushed it a little closer so my ankles wouldn’t break and the other guy raced around to the passenger’s side and reached across and pulled me into the car.

Apparently, these two guys didn’t speak a word of English and “ayúdeme” means “help me” in Spanish. I don’t even know where that word came from, I mean, without thinking, I just said it. These guys didn’t even understand me when I thanked them so profusely in English.

So gracias, mi amigos!