I know I'm a klutz, but I didn't think it was this serious. Last week, while doing the Cotton Eye Joe of all things during a skeleton preshow, I was performing in Forbidden Fruit's first Rocky Horror Picture Show event of the year. Where did my kneecap go, Cotton Eye Joe?

The jury (A.K.A. my doctor) is still out on whether I damaged my ACL or slightly dislocated my kneecap, but whatever it was, it hurts like hell to bend it and I can't straighten it without having it buckle. With what was left of my dignity, I scooted myself offstage and eventually left the show early to go to the emergency room. Luckily my best friend was there to drive me, my parents drove down to help me, and my sister left her date early to visit as well which is how I met her boyfriend for the first time. To call it a long night is an understatement.

What followed was my sister and mother taking turns spending the night in my apartment over the weekend to mainly make sure I didn't fall down the stairs on my crutches. I spent Friday being driven around by my sister in my car to class, work to explain what happened, and back to class. When I finally got home, I was exhausted and burst into tears.

I've really hated this past week. I consider myself a very independent person, so while I am extremely thankful to my family and friends for helping me out (because I probably would have ended up back in the emergency room otherwise), it really sucked not being able to do a lot of things for myself, deal with pain, and having to sling myself around on crutches all day. My knee is doing a lot better than it was considering I can now put more weight on it and limp around my house without aid, but the fun is far from over.

With the job I have, I am unable to return to work until I am able to perform all my duties without help. While I have money in savings to fall back on, I am still stressed about making rent, buying groceries, and using Lyft to haul me around until I can drive again without that paycheck I make a living on. All these things add up, and even though this situation is a rainy day, it's not the one I want to be spending money on.

I'm that person who always advocates reaching out to others when you need a hand, but I dislike doing it myself because it feels like I'm causing all sorts of inconveniences just because I can't do the Cotton Eye Joe correctly. However, as my friends have pointed out to me, maybe this is some divine message from the universe telling me to not put so much stress on myself. Family and friends are there to help you out when you're in need because you'd do the same for them in a heartbeat. They're helping you because they want to and they care about your wellbeing.

I'm sure I'll learn more about this as I go through the healing process, but for now, all I know is that I wouldn't be where I am today without my loved ones. Thank you for caring for me by helping me do small tasks so I can focus on getting around, thank you for holding doors for me, thank you for making time in your lives for me, and thank you for laughing with me when all I wanted to do was cry.

Being independent is good and an important lesson to learn as one enters adulthood. However, you are only one person and you can't do it all at once. Go easy on yourself because your healing body and mind will thank you for it. Even when you're ready to strut out into the world again unattended, remember your humbling crutches and your loved ones who caught you after falling in the first place.