Fish Bone
My daddy always taught me to fear eating fish. “Be careful, you will get a bone in your throat. I knew a man once that...” he would tell us fish tale. He was full of hilarious stories all the time. I never really knew if they were true or just spun from his creative cranium. Needless to say, I was always careful about eating fish. I do like fish so with great fear I would pull apart every piece and make sure there were no bones in what I was eating. I have been able to go my whole life and have never fallen over once with a bone in my throat.
Until…
My husband was preaching in a Church in South Carolina where the Pastor always took him to an exceptional Fish Camp. I was with him this time and very excited to try it. I do love fish, you know. My mind whirled back to my childhood and the stories of: the man that fell over dead with a fishbone in his throat, or the man that could never talk again because the bone was so deep his tongue had to be removed. The stories go on and on. I ordered Fish Filets to be safe. Did you know that there are people that do not get all the bones out of a filet of fish?
I was distracted talking to our friends and having a wonderful time and did not check out my FILET of fish. Then it happened: a bone. A bone went straight into the back of my throat. I just sat there, smiling, and thinking to myself, “What are you going to do? You know it is not going anywhere? You know that you are going to fall over dead, no, that is not going to happen. Take another bite and see if it will go on down; surely it will go down. It can't be your time to die and in a Fish Camp of all places.
Across the room a man choked. I sat quietly. People surrounded him and finally everyone applauded. At least he was safe. Now what about me, I don’t want people applauding a bone that has just been ejected from the back my throat through the air by a person who thinks they know the Heimlich maneuver. Then, what if it did not eject? They would call an ambulance to put that lovely wrap around my neck, throw me on a gurney and carry me straight to the hospital to an awaiting surgery team to remove it.
It really did not hurt, it was just there. There in the back of my throat a bone was stuck rising up and down with every swallow I took, not leaving the point of entrance. What do I now do? Disturb the whole Restaurant, scream for help, lean over to my long times friends and tell them that I am fixing to die on the floor, throw my head back open my mouth wide and hope someone with a small hand could reach inside and pull it out.
No, my thoughts whirling just eat some bread. Try to get it to go on down with bread. Daddy always told me that if a bone did get in my throat bread would help it go down. My problem was did Daddy tell the truth on that one or not? He surely was telling the truth that a bone could, in fact, get stuck in the back of your throat. I sat there weakly smiling, not making a scene nor bringing attention to myself. The bone was not gagging me, just going up and down with every bite and swallow. Then the thought occurs to me; what happens if it makes it to my stomach?
What is a person to do in that situation? My husband and the Pastor were in a deep discussion on the Word of God. Should I let my bony throat be a matter of interruption? Should I ask my husband to meet me at the car, I had a problem? Should I say to my friends, “HELP, I am about to die and you people are discussing Biblical issues. I don’t want to be on the next busload to Heaven!!!”
Some of you may not believe this story. Some may even say that I am stretching the truth beyond measure. But I assure you, I am not. Did you know that Clint Eastwood saved the life of a fellow Golfer who was choking on a piece of cheese? Now, I have a bone in my throat and I am still breathing, not choking, just smiling and eating bread. I could feel it go up and down with every breath and every swallow. Clint, make my day, save me!!! (One way of the other.)
Still surprisingly enough I did not want anyone to know. How embarrassing, I have a bone in my throat. So we finally leave and I get the backseat of the van with my husband and tell him. “WHAT?” “SHHH, I don’t want anybody to know. You can get it out when we get to the room." “Teresa, you are crazy.” “OK, I am, but you gotta get this bone out of my throat. We don’t have insurance and I am not going to the hospital. You have to do it yourself. ”
Calling me crazy is the understatement of the year. I sent my husband to Wal-Mart to purchase a pair of long needle nose pliers before Church started. It was 6:20 church started at 7. Yes, I did, I really did. He came back to the room. I lay down on the bed. (Thank God this was not videoed.) He straddled me with the un-sterilized needle nosed pliers in hand, (these were desperate times) I opened my mouth as wide as I could and he reached in to get it. No smart remarks about my mouth, please. Voila!!! The inch long bone that was stuck straight in the back of my throat was safely and quickly removed.
My daddy always taught me to fear eating fish. “Be careful, you will get a bone in your throat. I knew a man once that...” he would tell us fish tale. He was full of hilarious stories all the time. I never really knew if they were true or just spun from his creative cranium. Needless to say, I was always careful about eating fish. I do like fish so with great fear I would pull apart every piece and make sure there were no bones in what I was eating. I have been able to go my whole life and have never fallen over once with a bone in my throat.
Until…
My husband was preaching in a Church in South Carolina where the Pastor always took him to an exceptional Fish Camp. I was with him this time and very excited to try it. I do love fish, you know. My mind whirled back to my childhood and the stories of: the man that fell over dead with a fishbone in his throat, or the man that could never talk again because the bone was so deep his tongue had to be removed. The stories go on and on. I ordered Fish Filets to be safe. Did you know that there are people that do not get all the bones out of a filet of fish?
I was distracted talking to our friends and having a wonderful time and did not check out my FILET of fish. Then it happened: a bone. A bone went straight into the back of my throat. I just sat there, smiling, and thinking to myself, “What are you going to do? You know it is not going anywhere? You know that you are going to fall over dead, no, that is not going to happen. Take another bite and see if it will go on down; surely it will go down. It can't be your time to die and in a Fish Camp of all places.
Across the room a man choked. I sat quietly. People surrounded him and finally everyone applauded. At least he was safe. Now what about me, I don’t want people applauding a bone that has just been ejected from the back my throat through the air by a person who thinks they know the Heimlich maneuver. Then, what if it did not eject? They would call an ambulance to put that lovely wrap around my neck, throw me on a gurney and carry me straight to the hospital to an awaiting surgery team to remove it.
It really did not hurt, it was just there. There in the back of my throat a bone was stuck rising up and down with every swallow I took, not leaving the point of entrance. What do I now do? Disturb the whole Restaurant, scream for help, lean over to my long times friends and tell them that I am fixing to die on the floor, throw my head back open my mouth wide and hope someone with a small hand could reach inside and pull it out.
No, my thoughts whirling just eat some bread. Try to get it to go on down with bread. Daddy always told me that if a bone did get in my throat bread would help it go down. My problem was did Daddy tell the truth on that one or not? He surely was telling the truth that a bone could, in fact, get stuck in the back of your throat. I sat there weakly smiling, not making a scene nor bringing attention to myself. The bone was not gagging me, just going up and down with every bite and swallow. Then the thought occurs to me; what happens if it makes it to my stomach?
What is a person to do in that situation? My husband and the Pastor were in a deep discussion on the Word of God. Should I let my bony throat be a matter of interruption? Should I ask my husband to meet me at the car, I had a problem? Should I say to my friends, “HELP, I am about to die and you people are discussing Biblical issues. I don’t want to be on the next busload to Heaven!!!”
Some of you may not believe this story. Some may even say that I am stretching the truth beyond measure. But I assure you, I am not. Did you know that Clint Eastwood saved the life of a fellow Golfer who was choking on a piece of cheese? Now, I have a bone in my throat and I am still breathing, not choking, just smiling and eating bread. I could feel it go up and down with every breath and every swallow. Clint, make my day, save me!!! (One way of the other.)
Still surprisingly enough I did not want anyone to know. How embarrassing, I have a bone in my throat. So we finally leave and I get the backseat of the van with my husband and tell him. “WHAT?” “SHHH, I don’t want anybody to know. You can get it out when we get to the room." “Teresa, you are crazy.” “OK, I am, but you gotta get this bone out of my throat. We don’t have insurance and I am not going to the hospital. You have to do it yourself. ”
Calling me crazy is the understatement of the year. I sent my husband to Wal-Mart to purchase a pair of long needle nose pliers before Church started. It was 6:20 church started at 7. Yes, I did, I really did. He came back to the room. I lay down on the bed. (Thank God this was not videoed.) He straddled me with the un-sterilized needle nosed pliers in hand, (these were desperate times) I opened my mouth as wide as I could and he reached in to get it. No smart remarks about my mouth, please. Voila!!! The inch long bone that was stuck straight in the back of my throat was safely and quickly removed.
So, what is the Spiritual application to my demise?
II Corinthians 12:7...there was given to me a thorn in the flesh...
- When things go wrong in your life, you don’t have to broadcast it.
- Little things can be very distracting to your Christian walk,
- The good Lord did not create anything without a purpose, but why are fish bones are like thorns.
- God works in mysterious ways, even using Needle Nose Pliers if necessary.
- Husbands do come in handy.
- I would rather swallow a bone than to be swallowed by a fish.
- “Be ye fishers of men” is scriptural, eating a bony fish…hmmm.
II Corinthians 12:7...there was given to me a thorn in the flesh...
RSS Feed