All Thumbs? I don't think so

As PROMISED, here's an update on my THUMB. First off, my thumb and I are doing fine. And if you're curious WHAT happened, HOW it landed me in the hospital for emergency surgery, and WHY it was a learning experience as well, READ ON. What a week!

On Monday, I had a sore thumb. A tiny wound from fixing a leaky kitchen faucet got infected. Little cuts and scratches don't usually bother me, but this one was rather annoying.

On Tuesday, my right thumb was twice its normal size and started hurting. However, it was getting late, and I may have thought a good night's sleep would help - as it usually does for so many things.

On Wednesday, the infection was spreading. My thumb was red, and any movement of my hand was excruciatingly painful. So I called my doctor, sent her some pictures, and got an appointment for the afternoon.

No such thing as a thumb question

The thumb had now tripled in size, and I was running a fever without realising it. One look at my hand, a few painful squeezes, and my GP sent me to the hospital. No time to waste!

Around midnight & the morning after

Wednesday night, I had emergency surgery as the infection was creeping down my thumb towards my wrist. I'd have thought a local anaesthetic might suffice, but what do I know? They preferred knocking me out completely. OK, that's one way to shut me up.

On Thursday, the sun was shining, my thumb was sore from the operation but already feeling much better, and I expected to go home that same day. The doctors thought otherwise and had me stay another night - better safe than sorry, I guess.

At the end of the week...

On Friday, I could finally go home. So, what did this experience teach me? A couple of things. First of all, there's no such thing as a dumb thumb question. Had I not gone to see my GP, I'd have been in life-threatening trouble. It was that serious.

Also, I discovered how much I can do with only ONE hand - and my least-favoured one at that. As someone who identifies as decidedly right-handed, I first thought I was up to a real challenge. To my surprise, it was relatively easy.

One-hand bandage

Except for writing by hand and using kitchen knives, I'm OK using my left hand for just about anything. I can even bandage my right hand without any assistance.

Of course, I found myself trying to link this one-hand challenge to my One Rule approach. Easy. For most daily chores, I don't need both hands - nor do you need all the grammar rules for daily communication in English. Simple as that.

The Power of One

One hand, One Rule, ONE underlying thought: The things I cannot do right now can wait, which adds focus to what matters most. There's so much I can do using this 'power of one'.

The same goes for grammar rules in English language teaching: there's One Rule - to rule them all. The rest, however useful, is extra. And trust me, without all those extra rules, it won't feel like being all thumbs at all - quite the opposite!

???? Hi, I'm Leon, and I help English language teachers discover how the ONE RULE approach to grammar ?EMPOWERS them & their students, ?SAVES TIME better spent on serious fun with the language, and ?BOOSTS motivation & results.

?? ONE RULE ENGLISH: Why Grammar S*cks & How to Fix It

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