moving

As I stood at the three point line, the ball seemed to be in slow

motion. Screams from the crowd came as the ball dropped through the

net. Not only did this shot go in but it dropped through the net with

such force that it made a sound that was heard throughout the gym. The

gym was packed and the fans were on their feet, I had just hit my first

three pointer of my varsity basketball career. As our team set up the

press, sweat dripped from my face. I was close enough to kiss my

opponent, there was no way he was going to get the ball. He shoved me

backward and he planted his foot on mine, he then pushed off and ran for

the inbounder.

I fell back a few feet and sprinted towards my man. As

the inbounder released the ball with a firm push I stuck my hand out in

hopes for a steal, SNAP! As the ball was deflected towards the right my

man ran and picked it up. I quickly looked down at my finger and with

fear and I pain walked over to my bench. My pinkie-finger on my right

hand was at a ninety degree ankle, as sweat dripped down may face I

could feel myself getting hot. My stomach seemed to drop and I was

feeling as if I was on a roller coaster. The game had been stopped and

I was brought into the coach's room. My assistant coach led me into the

room and sat me down on a wooden chair. I began to feel very cold, and

my finger began to have a shooting pain. This pain was not present

before and was not making itself known that there was something wrong

with.

My parents entered the room, my mother carrying a face that I never had

seen before. My father with a calm collective look to him. The

assistant then began to explain that there was to deal with this, either

go to the hospital and miss the game or deal with it right in the room.

My mother stared over at my coach when he relayed this message to me and

my father seem to agree with my coach. I looked at my coach with eyes

of trust and horror, and then laid my hand in his. He then took his

hand and placed it over my pinkie. Which by now was swelling and

extremely painful. Soon he got a firm grip and with one quick tug my

finger was now vertically correct. My coach then looked at me with

bulging eyes and asked how it felt. Being the starting point guard on

my schools varsity team there was no way I was going to say that I

needed to leave the game. With a convincing nod and a energetic

response I was on my way back onto the court. I reentered the game and

the crowd began to applaud, I was so nervous. It was like the first

time I had ever played basketball in front of a crowd. The game resumed

and I ran down the court, my finger throbbed and I could not help but

think of it. My teammates snapped the ball quickly over to me and I

caught it. I felt like dropping the ball and running to the sideline

but instead I got rid of the ball as soon as I could. I then proceeded

to run over to the sideline and with a look of pain in my eyes I let my

coach know that I needed to come out of the game. As I sat there and

watched my team lose the game I could not decide if I was hurting more

from my finger or from the fact that I was not in there helping my team.

As the coach was screaming and yelling in the locker room I could not

help but think about my finger, the pain was no shooting down my arm and

I was praying that I did not break it. I showered and proceeded to get

dressed. Each time I buttoned a button on my shirt I would get a

shooting pain, I began to believe that I should go to the hospital but I

did not want to let anyone know. I walked up the steps and there were

my parents. My Mom gave me a look of compassion and she seemed very

concerned. Sternly, my father said that I should go to the hospital but

with a convincing tone of voice I talked them out of it. I went home

that night and stayed up thinking about the possibility that I might

have a broken finger. As I dazed off to sleep I repeated to myself that

things were going to be O.K.

I woke up in some pain but I thought nothing of I because injuries are

always worse the day after. It was Saturday so I had a couple of days

to rest my finger, by mid-afternoon my finger as throbbing like it had

just been hit by a hammer. At this time I decided that I needed to go

to the emergency room. My father and I hopped into the 95 Mazda 626 and

of to the hospital we went. On the ride there several things were going

though my mind, although I was very optimistic. At most I thought I

would miss a month or so, and that was absolute tops. I got to the

hospital and filled out paperwork. Actually I filled out endless pages

of paperwork that was quite painful to my finger. About twenty minutes

later a short, a thin blond hair nurse came out and with a soft voice

said "George." I then got up and with a nervous step in my walk

proceeded to the examination room. I took a seat and the nurse asked to

see my finger. She gently touched my finger. With a stare that made me

nervous, replied "this does not look good." With a threatened voice I

said" What do you mean," she then pointed out to me that the top part

of my finger was twisted to the left. My knuckle was twice the size of

any other one on my finger and it had a blue color to it, the kind of

blue you see when you have been bruised very badly. I had notice this

before but I had failed to make a big deal of it, then the doctor walked

in. He was a tall man with a thick mustache and thick brown hair. He

opened his mouth and the words "how did you do this?" came out. I

replied in a basketball game and he then began to take a look at my

finger. He had a look of concern on his face and before I knew it I was

gong to have my fingered x-rayed. I had this done which took all of ten

minutes and then he returned with the results. I had been sitting there

in anticipation of the results. I was on the edge of my seat waiting for

his return. Then the door opened slowly and the doctor walked in. He

took a seat next to me and with a calm voice said" It looks as if you

are going to need surgery." I almost fell out of my seat this would

mean that I would miss just about my whole season. Me, the starting

point guard out for the season. I looked at my father with hope and

desperation hoping that he would have some advice to give me. What could

he say the doctor had given his diagnosis and he was right. The doctor

then proceeded with a stern convincing voice to say that I had shattered

the bones in my right pinkie finger. I would have to have surgery to

pin these bones back together, the process is going to take about two

and half hours. I picked myself up off the floor and my dad and I got

back into the Mazda and drove home. I was extremely quiet on the way

home and felt as if all my hard work and preparation for this basketball

season was for nothing. Although my father tried to keep my hopes up, it

was not having any effect on me. The trip to hospital was one that I

regretted and in two weeks from then, would be playing for in the

operating room.

The weekend seemed to drag on forever and finally Monday rolled around.

Throughout school I had shooting pains in my finger and all I could

think about was what exactly my coach was going to say when I gave him

the news that I was going to be out for six weeks. The day ended and I

packed my school bag as usual, I then headed for basketball practice. I

got there and everyone came up to me asking how my finger was, I

responded with an upset disappointing tone, that I would be out for six

weeks. The team was as surprised as I was when I heard the noise.

Although the team felt bad, they were not the ones that were going to

have the doctor cut open their finger, and pin tiny bones back together.

I had stay on the sidelines and watch the team day in and day out play

the game that I loved so much. The worst of it was that I had to watch

someone fill my spot, a spot that I had worked long hours for in the

summer. Someone was just going to step in and take the spot that I had

reserved for myself. That was worse than the pain of my finger or the

surgery I had to go through.

The day had come, and I woke up extremely early that morning. I was

not allowed to eat anything and as I was driving in with my father my

stomach was growling. We arrived at the hospital and I checked in at

the front desk, a rather large women with brown hair took the

information that they needed. They brought me into a room and had me

put on a johnny. You know, one of those pieces of clothing that shows

your body to the world. I came out of the bathroom and they had brought

in a television for my father and I too watched as we waited. We put in

"Whit men can't jump" and just as Woody was going to take the court for

the first time the overweight nurse walked in. They brought me to the

prep room and there I lay just waiting to go under. As they started my

IV I began to get nervous. I thought of nothing except for the surgery

to come. The doctor then added vallium to my IV and before I could count

to five I was out.

I woke up and felt very sluggish, I lay there for a while and then

proceeded to get dressed. The operation was over and I was on my way to

recovery. Two weeks passed and I was still attending every practice and

every game, this was very hard for me because I was unable to play. The

season went on and I watched for the sidelines, and on the final game of

the season, I got my cast off. However, I was unable to play because I

still needed to go to therapy for my finger. My junior basketball

season was lost, and I could never get it back. The effects came a year

later, May of senior year.