Is That Really True?

After my parents helped their friends do inventory at their grocery store, they were rewarded by being treated to a steak dinner. It was a hot summer’s evening and my younger brother and I stayed at the grocery owner’s home with their son, David, who was in ninth grade. I was two years younger.

After eating a simple meal ourselves, we decided to go outside before the sun completely set. David loved golf and thought my brother and I should learn how to swing a golf club. Wandering towards the house at the top of the hill, after my turn, I paid no attention to my brother’s attempts. Suddenly, my body propelled forward as I heard a loud, but deep, thump. I found myself on one knee with my left hand on the back of my head before I realized what had happened.

Feeling wetness on my palm, I realized I was bleeding. My bloody palm nor long hair could restrain the flow of blood. Leaving a trail, I hurried to the house where David’s older sister had come home sick from work.

Perched on a barstool once inside, a towel was handed to me to apply pressure on my wound while his sister called 9-1-1. Unable to contact our parents, we waited for the EMT to arrive.

“Oooh, looks like you might need stitches. Try to stay awake for me, hon,” he said while cleaning the hurt area. He continued to tell jokes to keep me awake.

Sleepy, I was transported to the ER where my parents joined us shortly. My trip to the ER entailed four stitches, matted hair, a cut nerve, and a fractured skull. The sound of them working on my head without any pain medicine intrigued me.

Two years later, I found myself sitting in an eye doctor’s office learning cysts were on my retina creating a large blind spot. Asking the Dr. what caused this, he responded, “A blow to the head could do it.”

From that point forward, my brother lived with guilt. In another couple of years, my eyes were diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a hereditary, incurable, progressive eye disease. The prognosis was total blindness eventually. At first, my brother still believed my future blindness was all his fault. As the Drs. explained more, he learned it wasn’t his fault at all.

In life, there are many times we have false beliefs for one reason or another. It could be based upon information, information not yet discovered, or false perceptions of our own. I hope to look at a few of these beliefs or false assumptions over the next month. It is a problem faced daily that often isn’t taken into consideration. In order to change our focus, we need to identify the true problem.

Tell me of any false beliefs you think of…serious, or funny in the comments below.

© 2015, Jena Fellers. All rights reserved.