In a couple of months, the California Gymkhana Association would be holding the state show. I had been practicing and participating in district shows all year long to get ready for the state show. A gymkhana consists of timed events on horse back. .
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My pony's name was Sunny. A ten year old Pony of America. Sunny was a birthday present from my parents on my ninth birthday. Sunny and I had competed in numerous shows, rodeos, and Gymkhanas. On that nice spring day, I had been practicing for the upcoming shows. There was one event Sunny always hated and we never did very well on. It is called Hurry Scurry. In this event, the horse and rider have to jump over a one and a half foot jump three times. Seeing that this event was always a struggle, I decided that would be the first event to practice that day. As we went over the first jump, Sunny lost his footing. As he tired to gain his balance back, he attempted to jump over the second jump. Due to being off balance it threw him forward and he land right on top of me.
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Lying rather uncomfortably on the examination table while facing the painfully bright ceiling lights, I fidgeted nervously, desperately trying to ignore the gloominess of the situation. I attempted to focus on staying warm in the bitterly cold room, but the events just kept running through my head.the intense pain, my overwhelming fear, and the frantic scrambling of surgeons and nurses in the Emergency Room. The doctors told me I had broken a vertebra in my lower back. My response to the news was; "So I have to wear a brace now when I ride?" ".
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Waiting for the doctor now, I became unbearably impatient. I had waited for three months to find out whether or not I would be cleared to ride my horse again, but the thought of waiting another five minutes seemed impossible. Then Dr. Rodney of Loma Linda Medical Center entered the room. She was friendly, but perceptibly uncomfortable. She almost seemed sad.