Incidents and Accidents

So I went up to the wine and cheese party (which also had fruit so I did nibble and put in my £5 contribution to the evening’s fare) and when I entered the kitchen to look for the girls who were baking fresh bread for their cheeses I saw one of my CMRS compatriots, Steven, had an open wound on his wrist that he was dangling over the sink. Having some experience with such wounds, I asked him to run it under the tap for a moment so I could see the wound itself, which was bleeding robustly but not excessively. With a few glances I could see it was short and deep and would require a stitch (or two as the case turned out to be) – his concern was that there might still be glass in it, as he had gotten the injury washing a glass in the sink and dropping it, which made him try to reflexively catch it, which is when the sharpness came in contact with his wrist apparently.

The girls were in a bit of a tizzy and one went to fetch Bianca, our admirable Resident Junior Dean who is here at CMRS working on her doctorate and supervising us undergrads in our living space this semester. Meanwhile I told our injured friend to elevate his wrist and be calm, but it was hard to be calm with the flurry of activity as people popped in and out to see what the fuss was in the kitchen. Finally, though it was very quick it seemed like a long time in the moment, Bianca arrived and it was agreed that this injury would require a trip to the Emergency Room – so they left for that after Jessica (an off duty Junior-junior dean, i.e. an undergrad here to study who has been here before meant to assist Bianca in her duties on a rotating nightly basis with one other Junior-junior dean, Lisa Marie – who was also present and had gone to fetch Bianca actually I believe) wrapped up his wound with the bandage and gauze in the first aid kit.

He is fine, of course, and after two or three hours returned with two stitches and a sore wrist. I am told Bianca will have to interview everyone present for the incident for her report at some point soon. Really, these things happen in any number of kitchens across the world every day no doubt, and it was handled pretty well over all. I, for instance, didn’t even think to mention it to either my Uncle or my friend Leah, or even my sweetie when I spoke with them at various later points in the evening, as it seems just a commonplace accident of the home. Yet, I feel it bears mentioning here in some detail to assure people that being on study-away or it being a special time for you does not inoculate you from the accidents and incidents of everyday life. If and when they happen, don’t think you are the only one who had a bump in the road away from home, don’t let it ruin your trip or define your trip in a bad light.